Latin language of expression. Dictionary of Latin Expressions M

Magis inepte, quam ineleganter.(MAGIS INEPTE, KVAM INELEGANTER.)
More ridiculous than ugly.
Suetonius in “The Divine Claudius” about the emperor: “He also composed eight books about his life, written not so much tastelessly as stupidly.”

Magister bibendi(MASTER BIBANDI).
Drinking teacher; drinking party manager; master of drinking.

Magni nominis umbra(MAGNI NOMINIS UMBRA.)
The shadow of a great name (about a person who survived the time of his glory and success or about a descendant of a great person).
From Lucan.

Magnum opus(MAGNUM OPUS).
The main work.

Mala gallina - malum ovum(MALYA TALLINA - MALYUM OVUM).
A bad chicken is a bad egg.
Wed. Russian: The apple doesn't fall far from the tree.

Mala herba cito crescit(MALIA HERBA CYTO CRESCIT).
Thin grass grows quickly.
Proverb.

Male cuncta ministrat impetus(MALE KUNKTA MINISTRAT IMPETUS).
Passion is a bad leader.
From Papinia Station.

Mali principit - malus finis Mali(PRINCIPLES - MALUS FINIS).
Bad beginning, bad ending.
From Terence.

Malesuada fames(MALEZUADA FAMES).
Hunger is a bad advisor.
From V e r g i l i a.

Malo cum Platone errare, quam cum aliis recte sentire(MALO KUM PLYATONE ERRARE, KVAM KUM ALIIS REKTE SENTIRE).
It is better to be wrong with Plato than to be right with others. Or: It is better to be wrong with a wise man than to be right with fools.

Malum consillium est, quod mutari non potest(MALYUM CONSILLIUM EST, KVOD MUTARI NON POTEST).
A bad decision is one that cannot be changed.
From Publilius Syrus (1st century BC).

Malum nullum est sine aliquo bono(MALUM NULLUM EST SINE ALIQUO BONO).
Every cloud has a silver lining.
Proverb found in Pliny the Elder.

Malus animus(MALUS ANIMUS).
Bad intention.

Malus eventus(MALUS EVENTUS).
Bad case; bad incident.

Mane et nocte(MANE ETH NOKTE).
Morning and night.

Manifestum non eget probatione(MANIFESTUM NON EGET PROBATIONE).
The obvious does not need proof.

Manus manum lavat(MANUS MANUM LYAVAT).
The hand washes the hand.
Proverb found in Petronius and Seneca.

Mare interbibere(MARE INTERBIBERE).
Drink the sea, i.e. do the impossible.
The source is a legend told by Plutarch (c. 46 - c. 127) about the resolution of a controversial issue between the Ethiopian and Egyptian kings.

Materia subtilis(MATERIA SUBTILIS).
Thin, delicate material.

Materia tractanda(MATERIA TRACTANDA).
Subject of discussion, conversation.

Mater natura(MATER NATURA).
Nature is mother.

Mater pia(MATER PIA).
Tender, kind mother.

Mea culpa(MEA KULPA).
My fault; sinful.

Mea, memoria(MEA MEMORIA).
In my memory.

Mea parvitas(MEA PARVITAS).
My insignificance (derogatory about myself).
From Valerius Maximus (1st century AD).

Medice, cura te ipsum!(MEDICE, KURA TE IPSUM!)
Doctor, heal yourself!
Gospel of Luke, 4, 23. The proverb that Jesus Christ used in a conversation with the inhabitants of Nazareth: “He said to them: Of course, you will say to Me the proverb: Physician, heal yourself; do also here, in your fatherland, what we heard it happened in Capernaum."

Mel in ore, verba lactis, fel in corde, fraus in factis(MEL IN ORE, VERBA LYAKTIS, FEL IN CORDE, FRAUS IN FACTIS).
Honey on the tongue, milk in words, bile in the heart, deception in deeds.
An ancient epigram on the Jesuits.

Melius non incipient, quam desinent(MELIUS NON INCIPENT, QUAM DESIENT).
It's better not to start than to stop halfway.
From Senek.

Memento mori(MEMENTO MORI).
Memento Mori!
A form of greeting exchanged upon meeting between monks of the Trappist order, founded in 1664.

Memento quod es homo(MEMENTO KVOD ES HOMO).
Remember that you are human.
From F. Bacon (1561-1626).

Mendax in uno, mendax in omnibus(MENDAX IN UNO, MENDAX IN OMNIBUS).
He who lies about one thing lies about everything.

Mens agitate molem(MENS AGITAT PRAYER).
The mind moves the mass, i.e. thought sets matter in motion.
From Virgil.

Mens sana in Sogroge sano(MENS SANA IN CORPORE SANO).
In a healthy body healthy mind.
From Yu venal.

Meo voto(IEO VOTO).
In my opinion.

Merito fortunae(MARITO FORTUNE).
On a happy occasion.

Mihi nihil aliud virile sexus esset(MIHI NIKHIL ALIUD VIRILE SEXUS ESSET).
If I have anything masculine, it is a sign of gender.
From Petronius Arbiter.

Mihi vindicta, ego retribuam.(MIHI VINDICTA, EGO RETRIBUAM).
Vengeance is mine, and I will repay.
Romans 12, 19.

Militavi pop sine gloria.(MILITAVI NON SINE GLORIA).
I fought not without glory.
From Horace.

Minima de malis(MINIMA DE MALIS).
The lesser of two evils (choose).

Minus habens(MINUS HABANS).
Having little (about a person of small abilities).

Miserable dictu(MIZERABILE DIKTU).
Regrettable.

Mixture verborum(MIXTURE VERBORUM).
Verbal jumble.

Modo vir, modo femina(MODO VIR, MODO FEMINA).
Either a man or a woman.
From Ovid.

modus agendi(MODUS AGENDI).
Modus operandi.

Modus cogitandi(MODUS COGITANDI).
Way of thinking.

modus dicendi(MODUS DICENDI).
Manner of expression.

modus vivendi(MODUS VIVENDI).
Lifestyle.

Moilia tempora fandi(MOLLIA TEMPORA FANDI).
A time convenient for conversation.

More majorum(MORE MAJORUM).
According to the custom of our ancestors; as it was done in the old days.

Mors animae(MORS ANIME).
Death of the soul.

Mors ultima ratio(MORS ULTIMA RATION).
Death is the final reason for everything.

Mortem effugere nemo potest.(MORTEM EFFUGERE NEMO POTEST).
No one can escape death.
From Cicero.

Multa nocent(MULTA NOTE).
A lot of harm.

Multa, non-multum(MULTA, NON MULTUM).
A lot, but not much, i.e. large in quantity, but insignificant.

Multa paucis(MULTA PAUCIS).
Much in little, that is, short and clear.

Multi sunt vocati, pauci vero electi(MULTI SUNT VOKATI, PAUCI VERO ELECTI).
Many are called, but few are chosen.
Gospel of Matthew, 20, 16. In his parable, Jesus Christ compares the kingdom of heaven with the owner of the house, who hired workers in his vineyard. He paid everyone the same for the work: both those who came in the morning and those who came at the end of the day. One of those who hired a job in the morning began to grumble about the injustice of such payment. But the owner of the vineyard answered him like this: “Take what is yours and go; I want to give this last one the same as I give you; am I not empowered to do what I want in my life? Or is your eye envious because I am kind? So it will be.” The last are first, and the first are last; for many are called, but few are chosen.”

Multum in parvo(MULTUM IN PARVO).
Much in small (about large content in small volume).

Multum, non-multa(MULTUM, NON MULTUM).
A lot, not a lot (read, do).
Proverb; found in Pliny the Elder: “You ask how I would advise you to study in your long solitude... Do not forget to carefully select authors in each genre. After all, you must, as they say, read a lot, not a lot.” Also from Quintilian: “We must develop the mind and develop a style by reading a lot, and not by reading a lot.”

Mundus uqiversus exercet histrioniam(MUNDUS UNIVERSUS EKSERZET HISTRIONIAM).
The whole world is engaged in acting.
From Petronius Arbiter.

Mundus vult decipi, ergo decipiatur(MUNDUS VULT DECIPI, ERGO DECIPIATUR).
The world wants to be deceived, so let it be deceived.
The aphorism is attributed to Pope Paul IV (1555-1559); found in a truncated form in some medieval authors.

Munerum animus optimus est(MUNERUM ANIMUS OPTIMUS EST).
The best of gifts is intention, i.e. A gift is not expensive - love is expensive.

Mus in pice(MUS IN PICE).
Mouse in peas (about a situation from which it is difficult to get out).

Mutatis mutandis(MUTATIS MUTANDIS).
By changing what needs to be changed; with changes; with reservations; in accordance with the situation and conditions.

Mutato nomine(MUTATO NOMINE).
Under a different name.

Mysterium magnum(MYSTERIUM MAGNUM).
Great miracle; great mystery.
From Jacob Boehme (1575-1624).

The most complete list!

A selection of beautiful phrases and popular aphorisms in Latin, sayings and quotes with translation for tattoos. Lingua latina is one of the most ancient languages, the appearance of which dates back to the middle of the 2nd millennium BC. e.

Wise Latin sayings are often used by contemporaries as inscriptions for tattoos or as independent tattoos in a beautiful font.

Phrases for tattoos in Latin

Audaces fortuna juvat.
(translation from Latin)
Happiness favors the brave.

Contra spent spero.
I hope without hope.

Debellare superbos.
Crush the pride of the rebellious.

Errare humanum est.

Est quaedam flere voluptas.
There is something of pleasure in tears.

Ex veto.
By promise, by vow.

Faciam ut mei memineris.
Quote from the work of the ancient Roman author Plautus.
I'll make sure you remember me.

Fatum.
Fate, rock.

Fecit.
I did it, I did it.

Finis coronat opus.
End crowns the work.

Gaudeamus igitur, Juvenes dum sumus!.
Let's have fun while we're young.

Gutta cavat Lapidem.
A drop wears away a stone.
Literally: Gutta cavat lapidem, consumitur anulus usu – A drop chisels a stone, the ring wears out from use. (Ovid)

Hoc est in votis.
That's what I want.

Homo homini Lupus est.
Man is a wolf to man.

Homo Liber.
Free man.

In hac spe vivo.
I live by this hope.

The truth is in the wine.

Magna res est amor.
Love is a great deal.

Malo mori quam foedari.
Better death than dishonor.

Ne cede malls.
Don't be discouraged by misfortune.

Noll me tangere.
Dont touch me.

Omnia mea mecum Porte.
I carry everything that’s mine with me.

Per aspera ad astra.
Through hardship to the stars.
The option is also used Ad astra per aspera– to the stars through thorns.
The famous saying is attributed to Lucius Annaeus Seneca, an ancient Roman philosopher.

Quod licet Jovi, non licet bovi.
What is allowed to Jupiter is not allowed to the bull.
A Latin phraseological unit that defines that there is no and cannot be equality among people.

Suum cuique.
To each his own.

Ubi bene, ibi patria.
Where it is good, there is homeland.
The original source appears to be in the comedy Plutus by the ancient Greek playwright Aristophanes.

Vale et me ama.
Farewell and love me.
Cicero ended his letters with this phrase.

I came, I saw, I conquered!
Laconic notice of Caesar about his victory over Pharnaces, son of Mithridates, at Cela, 47 BC.

Vlvere militare est.
Live means fight.

Vivere est cogitare
Living means thinking.
Words of the Roman statesman, writer and orator Marcus Tullius Cicero (106-43 BC)

Ab altero expectes, alteri quod feceris.
Expect from another what you yourself have done to another.

Abiens, abi!
Leaving go!
Adversa fortuna.
Evil rock.

Aequam memento rebus in arduis servare mentem.
Try to maintain presence of mind even in difficult circumstances.
Aetate fruere, mobili cursu fugit.

Take advantage of life, it is so fleeting.

Ad pulchritudinem ego excitata sum, elegantia spiro et artem efflo.
I am awakened to beauty, breathe grace and radiate art.

Actum ne agas.
What you're done with, don't come back to.

Aliena vitia in oculis habemus, a tergo nostra sunt.
Other people's vices are before our eyes, ours are behind our backs.

Aliis inserviendo consumor.
I waste myself in serving others.
The inscription under the candle as a symbol of self-sacrifice, cited in numerous editions of collections of symbols and emblems.

Amantes sunt amentes.
Lovers are crazy.

Amicos res secundae parant, adversae probant.
Friends are made by happiness, misfortune tests them.

Amor etiam deos tangit.
Even gods are subject to love.
Amor non est medicabilis herbis.
Love cannot be cured with herbs. (i.e. there is no cure for love. Ovid, “Heroids”)

Amor omnia vincit.
Love conquers everything.

Amor, ut lacrima, ab oculo oritur, in cor cadit.
Love, like a tear, is born from the eyes and falls on the heart.

Antiquus amor cancer est.
Old love is not forgotten.

Audi, multa, loquere pauca.
Listen a lot, talk little.

Audi, vide, sile.
Listen, watch and be silent.

Audire ignoti quom imperant soleo non auscultare.
I'm ready to listen to stupidity, but I won't listen.

Aut viam inveniam, aut faciam.
Either I’ll find a way, or I’ll pave it myself.

Aut vincere, aut mori.
Either win or die.

Aut caesar, aut nihil.
Either Caesar or nothing.

Beatitudo non est virtutis praemium, sed ipsa virtus.
Happiness is not a reward for valor, but it is valor itself.

Castigo te non quod odio habeam, sed quod amem.
I punish you not because I hate you, but because I love you.

Certum voto pete finem.
Set yourself only clear goals (i.e. achievable).

Cogitationes poenam nemo patitur.
No one is punished for thoughts.
(One of the provisions of Roman law (Digest)

Cogito, ergo sum.
I think, therefore I exist. (The position based on which the French philosopher and mathematician Descartes tried to build a system of philosophy free from elements of faith and based entirely on the activity of reason. René Descartes, “Principles of Philosophy”, I, 7, 9.)

Conscientia mille testes.
Conscience is a thousand witnesses. (Latin proverb)

Dolus an virtus quis in hoste requirat?
Who will decide between cunning and valor when dealing with the enemy? (Virgil, Aeneid, II, 390)

Ducunt volentem fata, nolentem trahunt.
Fate leads those who want to go, but drags those who don’t want to go. (Cleanthes' saying, translated into Latin by Seneca.)

Esse oportet ut vivas, non vivere ut edas.
You have to eat to live, not live to eat. (Medieval maxim paraphrasing the ancient sayings of Quintilian: “I eat to live, but I do not live to eat” and Socrates: “Some people live to eat, but I eat to live.”)

Hoc est vivere bis, vita posse priore frui.
To be able to enjoy the life you have lived means to live twice. (Martial, "Epigrams")

Etiam innocentes cogit mentiri dolor.
Pain makes even the innocent lie. (Publius, "Sentences")

Ignoscito saepe alteri, nunquam tibi.
Forgive others often, never forgive yourself. (Publius, "Sentences")

Infandum renovare dolorem.
To resurrect the terrible, unspeakable pain again, to talk about the sad past. (Virgil, "Aeneid")

Homo homini lupus est.
Man is a wolf to man. (Plautus, “Donkeys”)

Consultor homini tempus utilissimus.
Time is the most useful adviser to a person.

Corrige praeteritum, praesens rege, cerne futurum.
Correct the past, manage the present, provide for the future.

Cui ridet Fortuna, eum ignorat Femida.
Whoever Fortune smiles on, Themis does not notice.

Cujusvis hominis est errare; nullius, nisi insipientis in errore perseverare.
It is common for every person to make mistakes, but only a fool tends to persist in a mistake.

Cum vitia present, paccat qui recte facit.
When vices flourish, those who live honestly suffer.

Damant, quod non intelegunt.
They judge because they don't understand.

De gustibus non disputandum est.
Tastes could not be discussed. (The Russian equivalent is the proverb “There is no friend according to taste”)

De mortuis aut bene, aut nihil.
About the dead it’s either good or nothing. (A probable source is Chilon’s saying “Do not slander the dead”)

Descensus averno facilis est.
The path to hell is easy.

Deus ipse se fecit.
God created himself.

Divide et impera.
Divide and rule. (Latin formulation of the principle of imperialist policy, which arose in modern times.)

Dura lex, sed lex.
The law is harsh, but it is the law. The meaning of the Latin phrase is: No matter how severe the law, it must be obeyed.

While I breathe I hope!

Dum spiro, amo atque credo.
As long as I breathe, I love and believe.

Edite, bibite, post mortem nulla voluptas!
Eat, drink, there is no pleasure after death!
From an old student song. A common motif of ancient inscriptions on tombstones and table utensils.

Educa te ipsum!
Educate yourself!

Esse quam videri.
Be, not seem to be.

Ex nihilo nihil fit.
Nothing comes from nothing.

Ex malis eligere minima.
Choose the least of two evils.

Ex ungue leonem.
You can recognize a lion by its claws.

Ex ungua leonem cognoscimus, ex auribus asinum.
We recognize a lion by its claws, and a donkey by its ears.

Experience est optima magistra.
Experience is the best teacher.

Facile omnes, cum valemus, recta consilia aegrotis damus.
When we are healthy, we easily give good advice to the sick.

Facta sunt potentiora verbis.
Acts are stronger than words.

Factum est factam.
What's done is done (a fact is a fact).

Famaclamosa.
Loud glory.

Fama volat.
The earth is full of rumors.

Feci quod potui, faciant meliora potentes.
I did everything I could, let anyone who can do it do better.
(A paraphrase of the formula with which the Roman consuls concluded their reporting speech, transferring powers to their successor.)

Felix, qui quod amat, defendere fortiter audet.
Happy is he who boldly takes under his protection what he loves.

Feminae naturam regere desperare est otium.
Having decided to pacify a woman’s temperament, say goodbye to peace!

Festina lente.
Hurry up slowly.

Fide, sed cui fidas, vide.
Be vigilant; trust, but be careful who you trust.

Fidelis et forfis.
Loyal and brave.

Finis vitae, sed non amoris.
Life ends, but not love.

Flagrante delicto.
At the crime scene, red-handed.

Forsomnia versas.
Blind chance changes everything (the will of blind chance).

Fortes fortuna adjuvat.
Fate helps the brave.

Fortiter in re, suaviter in modo.
Firm in action, gentle in handling.
(Persistently achieve the goal, acting gently.)

Fortunam citius reperis, quam retineas.
Happiness is easier to find than to maintain.

Fortunam suam quisque parat.
Everyone finds their destiny themselves.

Fructus temporum.
Fruit of time.

Fuge, late, tace.
Run, hide, be silent.

Fugit irrevocabile tempus.
Irreversible time is running out.

Gaudeamus igitur.
So let's have fun.

Gloria victoribus.
Glory to the winners.

Gustus legibus non subiacet.
Taste does not obey laws.

Gutta cavat lapidem.
A drop wears away a stone.

Heu conscienta animi gravis est servitus.
Worse than slavery is remorse.

Heu quam est timendus qui mori tutus putat!
He is terrible who considers death to be good!

Homines amplius oculis, quam auribus credunt.
People believe their eyes more than their ears.

Homines, dum docent, discunt.
People learn by teaching.

Hominis est errare.
Humans tend to make mistakes.

Homines non odi, sed ejus vitia.
It is not the person I hate, but his vices.

Homines quo plura habent, eo cupiunt ampliora.
The more people have, the more they want to have.

Homo hominis amicus est.
Man is a friend to man.

Homo sum et nihil humani a me alienum puto.
I am a man, and nothing human is alien to me.

Ibi potest valere populus, ubi leges valent.
Where the laws are in force, the people are strong.

Igne natura renovatur integra.
With fire, all nature is renewed.

Imago animi vultus est.
The face is the mirror of the soul.

Imperare sibi maximum imperium est.
To command oneself is the greatest power.

Forever, forever.

In Daemon Deus!
There is God in the Demon!

In dubio abstine.
When in doubt, refrain.

Infelicissimum genus infortunii est fuisse felicem.
The greatest misfortune is to be happy in the past.

Incertus animus dimidium sapientiae est.
Doubt is half of wisdom.

In pace.
In peace, in peace.

Incedo per ignes.
I walk among the fire.

Incertus animus dimidium sapientiae est.
Doubt is half of wisdom.

Injuriam facilius facias guam feras.
It's easy to offend, harder to endure.

In me omnis spes mihi est.
All my hope is in myself.

In memoriam.
In mind.

In pace leones, in proelio cervi.
In times of peace - lions, in battle - deer. (Tertullian, “On the Crown”)

Inter arma silent legs.
When weapons thunder, the laws are silent.

Inter parietes.
Within four walls.

In tyrannos.
Against tyrants.

The truth is in the wine. (Cf. Pliny the Elder: “It is generally accepted to attribute truthfulness to wine.”) A very common phrase in tattoos!

In vino veritas, in aqua sanitas.
Truth is in wine, health is in water.

In vitium ducit culpae fuga.
The desire to avoid a mistake draws you into another. (Horace, "The Science of Poetry")

In venere semper certat dolor et gaudium.
In love, pain and joy always compete.

Ira initium insaniae est.
Anger is the beginning of madness.

Jactantius maerent, quae minus dolent.

Those who show their grief the most are those who mourn the least.
Jucundissimus est amari, sed non minus amare.

It is very pleasant to be loved, but it is no less pleasant to love yourself.

Leve fit, quod bene fertur onus.

The load becomes light when you carry it with humility. (Ovid, "Love Elegies")

Lucri bonus est odor ex re qualibet.

The smell of profit is pleasant, no matter where it comes from. (Juvenal, “Satires”)

Lupus non mordet lupum.
A wolf will not bite a wolf.

Lupus pilum mutat, non mentem.
The wolf changes its fur, not its nature.

Manus manum lavat.
The hand washes the hand.
(A proverbial expression dating back to the Greek comedian Epicharmus.)

Mea mihi conscientia pluris est quam omnium sermo.
My conscience is more important to me than all the gossip.

Mea vita et anima es.
You are my life and soul.

Melius est nomen bonum quam magnae divitiae.
A good name is better than great wealth.

Meliora spero.
Hoping for the best.

Mens sana in corpore sano.
In a healthy body healthy mind.

Memento mori.
Memento Mori.
(The form of greeting that was exchanged when meeting monks of the Trappist Order. It is used both as a reminder of the inevitability of death and, in a figurative sense, of threatening danger.)

Memento quia pulvis est.
Remember that you are dust.

Mores cuique sui fingit fortunam.
Our fate depends on our morals.

Mors nescit legem, tollit cum paupere regem.
Death knows no law; it takes both the king and the poor.

Mors omnia solvit.
Death solves all problems.

Mortem effugere nemo potest.
No one can escape death.

Natura abhorret vacuum.
Nature abhors a vacuum.

Naturalia non sunt turpia.
Natural is not shameful.

Nihil est ab omni parte beatum.
Nothing is good in every way
(i.e. there is no complete well-being Horace, “Odes”).

Nihil habeo, nihil curo.
I have nothing - I don’t care about anything.

Nitinur in vetitum semper, cupimusque negata.

We always strive for the forbidden and desire the forbidden. (Ovid, "Love Elegies")

Nolite dicere, si nescitis.
Don't say if you don't know.

Non est fumus absque igne.
There is no smoke without fire.

Non ignara mali, miseris succurrere disco.
Having experienced misfortune, I learned to help those who suffer. (Virgil)

Non progredi est regredi.
Not moving forward means going backwards.

Nunquam retrorsum, semper ingrediendum.
Not one step back, always forward.

Nusquam sunt, qui ubique sunt.
Those who are everywhere are nowhere.

Oderint dum metuant.
Let them hate, as long as they are afraid. (The words of Atreus from the tragedy Actium named after him. According to Suetonius, this was the favorite saying of Emperor Caligula.)

Odi et amo.
I hate it and love it.

Omne ignotum pro magnifico est.
Everything unknown seems majestic. (Tacitus, Agricola)

Omnes homines agunt histrionem.
All people are actors on the stage of life.

Omnes vulnerant, ultima necat.
Every hour hurts, the last one kills.

Omnia mea mecum porto.
I carry everything that’s mine with me.
(When the city of Priene was taken by the enemy and the inhabitants in flight tried to capture more of their things, someone advised the sage Biant to do the same. “That’s what I do, because I carry everything I have with me,” he answered, meaning your spiritual wealth.)

Omnia fluunt, omnia mutantur.
Everything flows, everything changes.

Omnia mors aequat.
Death equals everything.

Omnia praeclara rara.
Everything beautiful is rare. (Cicero)

Omnia, quae volo, adipiscar.
I achieve everything I want.

Omnia vincit amor et nos cedamus amori.
Love conquers everything, and we submit to love.

Optimi consiliarii mortui.
The best advisors are dead.

Optimum medicamentum quies est.
The best medicine is peace.
(Medical aphorism, authored by the Roman physician Aulus Cornelius Celsus.)

Pecunia non olet.
Money doesn't smell.

Per aspera ad astra.
Through hardship to the stars. (Through difficulties to a high goal.)

Per fas et nefas.
By hook or by crook.

Per risum multum debes cognoscere stultum.
You should recognize a fool by his frequent laughter. (Medieval set expression.)

Perigrinatio est vita.
Life is a journey.

Persona grata.
A desirable or trusted person.

Petite, et dabitur vobis; quaerite et invenietis; pulsate, et aperietur vobis.
Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you. (Matt. 7:7)

First among equals. (A formula characterizing the position of the monarch in a feudal state.)

Quae fuerant vitia, mores sunt.
What were vices are now morals.

Quae nocent - docent.
What harms, it teaches.

Qui nisi sunt veri, ratio quoque falsa sit omnis.
If the feelings are not true, then our whole mind will turn out to be false.

Qui tacet – consentire videtur.
Whoever remains silent is considered to have agreed. (Russian analogy: Silence is a sign of consent.)

Quid quisque vitet, nunquam homini satis cautum est in horas.
No one can know when to look out for danger.

Quo quisque sapientior est, eo solet esse modestior.
The smarter a person is, the more modest he is usually.

Quod cito fit, cito perit.
What is soon done, soon falls apart.

Quomodo fabula, sic vita; non quam diu, sed quam bene acta sit refert.
Life is like a play in a theater; It's not how long it lasts that matters, but how well it's played.

Respue quod non es.
Throw away what is not you.

Scio me nihil scire.
I know that I know nothing.
(Latin translation of the freely interpreted words of Socrates. Compare Russian. Learn for a century, die a fool.)

Sed semel insanivimus omnes.
We all get mad someday.

Semper mors subest.
Death is always near.

Sequere Deum.
Follow the will of God.

Si etiam omnes, ego non.
Even if everything is, it’s not me. (i.e. Even if everyone does, I won't)

Si vis amari, ama.
If you want to be loved, love.

Si vis pacem, para bellum.
If you want peace, prepare for war.
(Source - Vegetius. Also cf. Cicero: “If we want to enjoy the world, we have to fight” and Cornelius Nepos: “Peace is created by war.”)

Sibi imperare maximum imperium est.
The highest power is power over oneself.

Similis simili gaudet.
Like rejoices in like.

Sic itur ad astra.
This is how they go to the stars.

Sol lucet omnibus.
The sun is shining for everyone.

Sola mater amanda est et pater honestandus est.
Only a mother deserves love, only a father deserves respect.

Sua cuique fortuna in manu est.
Everyone has their own destiny in their hands.

Suum cuique.
To each his own
(i.e. to each what belongs to him by right, to each according to his deserts, Provision of Roman law).

Tanta vis probitatis est, ut eam etiam in hoste diligamus.
The power of honesty is such that we value it even from an enemy.

Tanto brevius omne tempus, quanto felicius est.
The faster time flies, the happier it is.

Tantum possumus, quantum scimus.
We can do as much as we know.

Tarde venientibus ossa.
Those who come late get bones. (Latin proverb)

Tempora mutantur et nos mutamur in illis.
Times change, and we change with them.

Tempus fugit.
Time is running out.

Terra incognita.
Unknown land
(trans. something completely unknown or an inaccessible area on ancient geographical maps, this is how unexplored parts of the earth's surface were designated).

Tertium non datur.
There is no third; there is no third.
(In formal logic, one of the four laws of thinking is formulated this way - the law of the excluded middle. According to this law, if two diametrically opposed positions are given, one of which affirms something, and the other, on the contrary, denies, then there will be a third, middle judgment between them can not.)

Tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito!

Do not submit to trouble, but boldly go towards it!
Ubi nihil vales, ibi nihil velis.

Where you are not capable of anything, you should not want anything.
Ut ameris, amabilis esto.
To be loved, be worthy of love.

Utatur motu animi qui uti ratione non potest.
He who cannot follow the dictates of the mind, let him follow the movements of the soul.

Varietas delectat.
Variety is fun.

Verae amititiae sempiternae sunt.
True friendship is eternal.

A well-known and very popular phrase for tattoos:

I came, I saw, I conquered.

(According to Plutarch, with this phrase Julius Caesar reported in a letter to his friend Amyntius about his victory in the battle of Zela in August 47 BC over the Pontic king Pharnaces.)

Veni, vidi, fugi.
He came, he saw, he ran away.
Phrase for a tattoo with humor :)

Victoria nulla est, Quam quae confessos animo quoque subjugat hostes.
True victory is only when the enemies themselves admit defeat. (Claudian, “On the Sixth Consulate of Honorius”)

Vita sine libertate, nihil.
Life without freedom is nothing.

Viva vox alit plenius.
Living speech nourishes more abundantly
(i.e., what is presented orally is more successfully absorbed than what is written).

Vivamus atque amemus.
Let's live and love.

Vi veri vniversum vivus vici.
I conquered the universe with the power of truth during my lifetime.

Vivere est agere.
To live means to act.

Vivere est vincere.
To live means to win.

Carpe diem!
The winged Latin expression translates as “live in the present”, “seize the moment”.

The entire phrase goes like this: “ Aetas: carpe diem, quam minimum credula postero. - Time: seize the moment, trust the future as little as possible.”

Gutta cavat lapidem non vi, sed saepe cadendo - a drop chisels a stone not by force, but by frequent falling

Fortiter ac firmiter – Strong and strong

Aucupia verborum sunt judice indigna - literalism is beneath the dignity of a judge

Benedicite! - Good morning!

Quisque est faber sua fortunae - everyone is the smith of their own happiness

Read the continuation of the best aphorisms and quotes on the pages:

Natura incipit, ars dirigit usus perficit - nature begins, art guides, experience perfects.

Scio me nihil scire - I know that I know nothing

Potius sero quam nun quam - Better late than never.

Decipi quam fallere est tutius - it is better to be deceived than to deceive another

Omnia vincit amor et nos cedamus amori" - Love conquers everything, and we submit to love

Dura lex, sed lex - the law is harsh, but it is the law

Repetitio est mater studiorum - repetition is the mother of learning.

O sancta simplicitas! - Oh, holy simplicity

Quod non habet principium, non habet finem - that which has no beginning has no end

Facta sunt potentiora verbis - actions are stronger than words

Accipere quid ut justitiam facias, non est tam accipere quam extorquere - acceptance of reward for the administration of justice is not so much acceptance as extortion

Bene sit tibi! - Good luck!

Homo homini lupus est - man is a wolf to man

Aequitas enim lucet per se - justice shines by itself

citius, altius, fortius! - Faster, higher, stronger

AMOR OMNIA VINCIT – Love conquers everything.

Qui vult decipi, decipiatur - he who wishes to be deceived, let him be deceived

disce gaudere – Learn to rejoice

Quod licet jovi, non licet bovi - what is allowed to Jupiter is not allowed to the bull

Cogito ergo sum - I think, therefore I exist

Latrante uno latrat stati met alter canis - when one dog barks, the other immediately barks

Facile omnes, cum valemus, recta consilia aegrotis damus - All of us, when healthy, easily give advice to the sick.

Aut bene, aut nihil - Either good or nothing

Haurit aquam cribro, qui discere vult sine libro - he who wants to study without a book draws water with a sieve

Вona mente – With good intentions

Aditum nocendi perfido praestat fides Trust placed in a treacherous person gives him the opportunity to do harm

Igni et ferro – With fire and iron

Bene qui latuit, bene vixit - the one who lived unnoticed lived well

Amor non est medicabilis herbis - there is no cure for love (love cannot be treated with herbs)

Senectus insanabilis morbus est - Old age is an incurable disease.

De mortuis autbene, aut nihil - about the dead it’s either good or nothing

A communi observantia non est recedendum - one cannot neglect what is accepted by everyone

Intelligenti pauca - The wise will understand

In vino veritas, in aqua sanitas - truth in wine, health in water.

Vis recte vivere? Quis non? - Do you want to live well? Who doesn't want to?

Nihil habeo, nihil curo - I have nothing - I don’t care about anything

Scire leges non hoc est verba earum tenere, sed vim ac potestatem - knowledge of laws is not in remembering their words, but in understanding their meaning

Ad notam – For note”, note

Panem et circenses – Bread and circuses

DIXI ET ANIMAM LEVAVI - I said and relieved my soul.

Sivis pacem para bellum - if you want peace, prepare for war

Corruptio optimi pessima - the worst fall - the fall of the purest

Veni, vidi vici – I came, I saw, I conquered

Lupus pilum mutat,non mentem - the wolf changes its fur, not its nature

Ex animo – From the heart

Divide et impera - divide and conquer

Alitur vitium vivitque tegendo - by covering, vice is nourished and supported

AUDI, MULTA, LOQUERE PAUCA – listen a lot, talk little.

Is fecit cui prodest – Made by the one who benefits

Lupus pilum mutat,non mentem - the wolf changes its fur, not its nature

Ars longa, vita brevis - art is durable, life is short

Castigat ridento mores – Laughter castigates morals.”

De duobus malis minimum eligendum - one must choose the lesser of two evils

Desipere in loco - To be mad where it is appropriate

Bonum factum! - For good and happiness!

In maxima potentia minima licentia - the stronger the power, the less freedom

Usus est optimus magister - experience is the best teacher

Repetitio est mater studiorum - repetition - the mother of learning

Fac fideli sis fidelis – Be faithful to the one who is faithful (to you)

DOCENDO DISCIMUS - by teaching, we ourselves learn.

Memento mori - remember death.

Вis dat, qui cito dat - the one who gives quickly gives double

Mens sana in corpore sano - in a healthy body - a healthy mind.

Nulla regula sine exceptione - There is no rule without exceptions.

Erare humanum est, stultum est in errore perseverare - it is human nature to make mistakes, it is stupid to persist in an error

Primus inter pares – First among equals

Festina lente - hurry up slowly

omnia praeclara rara – Everything beautiful is rare

Repetitio est mater studiorum - repetition is the mother of learning.

Amicus plato, sed magis amica veritas - Plato is my friend, but the truth is dearer

Melius est nomen bonum quam magnae divitiae - a good name is better than great wealth.

Ipsa scientia potestas est - knowledge itself is power

FRONTI NULLA FIDES – don’t trust appearances!

Aditum nocendi perfido praestat fides - the trust placed in the treacherous allows him to do harm

Qui nimium properat, serius ab solvit - he who is in too much of a hurry, gets things done later

Cornu copiae – Cornucopia

Dulce laudari a laudato viro - it is pleasant to receive praise from a person worthy of praise

dum spiro, spero – While I breathe, I hope

Feci auod potui, faciant meliora potentes - I did what I could, whoever can do it better

Dum spiro, spero - while I'm breathing, I hope

Abusus non tollit usum - abuse does not cancel use

Aliis inserviendo consumor - while serving others, I burn myself

Fortunam citius reperifs,quam retineas / Happiness is easier to find than to maintain.

Fiat lux – Let there be light

AUDIATUR ET ALTERA PARS – the other side should also be heard.

Melius sero quam nunquam - better late than never

Et tu quoque, Brute! - And you Brute!

Ad impossibilia lex non cogit - the law does not require the impossible

A collection of Latin proverbs, sayings, phrases and expressions, which are collected together from various sources and can be useful to everyone for different things.

a deo rex, a rege lex- the king is from God, the laws are from the king

a die- from this day

a fortiori- especially

a limit– right away = from the doorstep

a nullo diligitur, qui neminem diligit- no one loves someone who doesn’t love anyone himself

a posteriori– from subsequent = based on experience = based on experience

a priori– from previous = based on previously known

ab absurdo- said to the deaf (ignorant, not understanding) = said absurdly = about absurd and false arguments and evidence = talk nonsense, nonsense

ab acisa et acu– from thread to needle = talking about one thing, about another = word for word (Petronius)

ab actu ad potentiam– from actual to possible

ab aeterno- eternally

ab altero expectes, alteri quod feceris- Expect from another what you yourself have done to another (Publius Syrus)

ab aqua silente cave– beware of still waters = in still waters there are devils

abducet praedam, qui accurrit prior- the one who comes running first will carry away the prey

ab equis ad asinos– from horses to donkeys = from priests to deacons (Gospel)

ab hoedis segregare oves– to separate the sheep from the goats = to separate the wheat from the chaff = to distinguish black from white

ab hoc et ab hac– both about this and that = lie and at random

ab igne ignem– from fire fire = favor for favor (Cicero)

ab imo pectore– from the depths of the soul = from the bottom of the soul = from the bottom of the heart (Lucretius)

ab incunabulis– from the cradle = from the very beginning = from the cradle

ab initio- at first

ab initio mundu– from the beginning of the world = from the creation of the world

ab initio nullum, semper nullum- first nothing - always nothing = you can’t make anything out of nothing = nothing comes out of nothing

ab jove principium– beginning from Jupiter (Virgil)

a bove majore discit arare minor– the young ox learns to plow from the old ox = if the father is a fisherman, then the son also looks at the water

ab ovo– from the egg = from the very beginning = from the beginning = from Adam

ab ovo usque ad mala– from eggs to apples = from beginning to end without a break = from A to Z (Horace)

absit omen- let this not serve as a bad omen

absque labore gravi non venit nulla seges– without hard work no crops will sprout = without labor you won’t even catch a fish from a pond

abundans cautela non nocet– excessive caution does not harm = those who are careful and God protects = if you don’t know the ford, don’t stick your nose into the water = measure seven times - cut once

ab uno disc omnes– judge everyone one by one = cut everyone with the same brush (Virgil)

ab verbis ad verbera– move from words to blows = move from admonitions to punishment = move from words to action = cane discipline

abyssus abyssum invocat– the abyss calls the abyss = like entails like = trouble does not come alone

acceptissima semper munera sunt, aucor quae pretiosa facit– the most pleasant gifts are those that are brought to you by a person dear to you (Ovid)

accipere quam facere praestat injuriam– it is better to accept than to offend = it is better to be offended than to offend someone (Cicero)

ad assem redire aliquem– to bring someone to the point of being an ace, i.e. to poverty = to be sent around the world (Horace)

ad calendas (= kalendas) graecas

ad carceres a calce revocare– return from the finish to the start = start all over again (Cicero)

ad clavum– sit at the helm = hold the reins of government in your hands (Cicero)

ad consilium ne accesseris, antequam voceris– don’t go to the council until you’re called (Cicero)

addere calcaria sponte currenti– to spur someone running of their own free will = there is no need to push a good horse (Pliny)

ad example- according to the sample

ad hoc– for this case = for this purpose = by the way

ad hominem– in relation to a person

ad honors– for the sake of honor = for free = free of charge

ad impossibilia nemo obligatur- no one is forced to do the impossible

ad infinitum- to infinity

ad kalendas (= calendas) graecas– before the Greek calendar = never = after the rain on Thursday

ad libitum– as you wish = at will = to choose from

ad litteram– literally = verbatim = word for word = neck to neck

ad modum- like

ad notam- For your information

ad notanda– it should be noted

ad notata– note

ad patres– to the forefathers = die = go to the next world = give your soul to God (Bible)

ad rem- to the point! = get to work!

ad unguem (factus homo)– down to the nails (down to the smallest detail) a perfect person = to perfection (Horace)

ad usum– for use = for use

ad usum externum– for external use

ad usum internum– for internal use

ad usum proprium– for personal use

ad valorem– according to cost = according to price

ad vogem– by the way = about

aequo animo– indifferent = calm

aequo animo audienda sunt imperitorum convincia– one should listen indifferently to the reproaches of the ignorant (Seneca)

alea jasta est– the die is cast = a decision that does not allow a return to the past (Suetonius)

alias– at another time = in another place

alma mater– nursing, nurturing mother = about the university = about the place where he was born and raised

altera pars– other (opposite) side

alter ego– other me = closest friend = like-minded person (Pythagoras)

amicus plato, sed magis amica (est) veritas– Plato is a friend, but truth is an even greater friend = Plato is my friend, but truth is dearer = truth is dearer than anything else (Aristotle)

amor non est medicabilis herbis– Love cannot be cured with herbs = The disease of love is incurable (Ovid)

anni currentis (a.c.)- this year

ante christum (a.c.)– before the Christian era

aquila non captat muscas- the eagle doesn't catch flies

argenteis hastis pugnare– fight with silver spears = money will break the stone

ars longa, vita brevis– art is durable, but life is short = live forever, learn forever

artes liberales– liberal arts

artes molliunt mores- the arts soften morals

asini cauda non facit cribrum– a donkey’s tail does not replace a sieve

asinos non curo– they don’t pay attention to donkeys

asino non opus est verbis, sed fustibus- the donkey needs not words, but a stick

asinus ad lyram– a donkey judges the lyre = understands it like a pig in oranges (Gellius)

asinus asino et sus sui pulcher- a donkey seems handsome to a donkey, and a pig to a pig

asinus asino pulcherrimus- for a donkey there is no more beautiful donkey

asinus asinum fricat– a donkey rubs against a donkey = a fool praises a fool

asinus buridani– Buridan's donkey

asinus esuriens fustem negligit– a hungry donkey does not pay attention to the club (Homer)

asinus in tegulis– donkey on the roof (Petronius)

asinus manebis in saecula saeculorum- you will remain an ass forever

asinus stramenta mavult quam aurum– a donkey prefers straw to gold = there are no comrades for the taste and color

a solvento pigro tibi salis elige nigri- take at least a crumb of black salt from a sloppy debtor = at least a tuft of wool from a black sheep

asperius nihil est humili, cum surgit in altem- there is no one more severe than the one who rises from insignificance (Eutropius)

aspicitur, non attractatur– visible, but cannot be grabbed = the eye sees, but the tooth is numb

assiduum mirabile non est– the familiar does not delight

a teneris unguiculis– from tender (soft) nails (Cicero)

athenas intrasse et solonem non vidisse!- to be in Athens and not see Solon

atrocitati mansuetudo est remedium- meekness is a remedy against cruelty (Phaedrus)

audaces fortuna juvat- fate helps the brave

audacer calumniare, semper aliquid haeret- slander boldly, something will always remain (Plutarch)

audentem forsque venusque juvat- Venus and good fortune help the brave (Ovid)

audentes deus ipse juvat– God himself helps the brave (Ovid)

audiatur et altera pars– you should listen to the other side

audi, cerne, tace, si vis cum vivere pace- listen, notice, be silent if you want to live in peace

Audi, Multa, Loquere Pauca– listen a lot, talk little

aura academica– student (free) spirit = free student life

aurea mediocritas– golden mean (Horace)

aurea ne credas quaecumque nitescere cernis– don’t believe that all that glitters is gold = not all that glitters is gold

aurem vellere alicui– pinch someone’s ear = remind someone of something

aureo hamo piscari– catch fish with a golden hook = promise mountains of gold

aures hominum novitate laetantur– news (novelty) pleases people’s ears

auribus lupum tenere– holding a wolf by the ears = being in a hopeless situation

auriculas asini quis non alphabet– who does not have donkey ears = and there is a hole in the old woman (Persius)

auri sacra fames– cursed thirst for gold (Virgil)

auro quaeque janua panditur– any door opens with gold

aurora music amica est– Aurora is a friend of the muses

aurum ex stercore colligendum– gold can be taken from dung too = gold glitters in the mud

aurum pro luto habere– gold, like manure, to have = money – chickens don’t peck (Petronius)

aurum recludit cuncta– gold reveals everything (Cicero)

out out– or – or = there is no third option

out bibat, out a beat- let him either drink or leave (Cicero)

aut caesar, aut nihil– either Caesar or nothing = all or nothing = either pan or gone

aut cum scuto, aut in scuto– with a shield or on a shield = return victorious or die a hero

avaritia copia non minuitur– wealth does not reduce greed = you cannot fill a bottomless barrel (Sallust)

avaritia omnia vitia alphabet– all vices come from stinginess = stinginess is the mother of all vices

avaritia scelerum mater– greed is the mother of crime

avaro omnia desunt, sapienti nihil- the greedy person lacks everything, the smart person has enough everything

avarum irritat, non satiat pecunia- money irritates stinginess, but does not satisfy = the greedy does not give himself peace (Publius Syrus)

avarus animus nullo satiatur lucro- a stingy soul will not be satisfied with any wealth (Publius Syrus)

avarus ipse miseriae causa est suae- the stingy one is the cause of his own misfortune (Publius Syrus)

avarus, nisi cum moritur, nihil rectum facit- a stingy person does nothing useful, except when he dies (Publius Syrus)

ave, caesar, morituri te salutant- Hello Caesar, those going to death greet you

Subject of the article - Latin proverbs and sayings:

• In vino veritas - The truth is in wine.
• Dies diem docet - Day by day teaches.
• Dum spiro, spero - While I'm breathing, I hope.
• Vivere est cogitare - To live is to think.
• Aquila non captat muscas - The eagle does not catch flies.
• Calamitas nulla sola – Troubles do not come one at a time.
• Festina lente – Hurry slowly.
• Labor hominem firmat - Work strengthens a person.

• Satur venter non studet libenter - A full belly is deaf to learning.
• Qualis vita et mors ita - As is life, so is death.
• Dicere non est facere – Saying does not mean doing.
• Vox populi, vox dei - The voice of the people is the voice of God.
• Homo homini lupus est - Man is a wolf to man.
• Tertium non datur - There is no third option.
• Potius sero quam nunquam - Better late than never.
• Finis coronat opus - The ending crowns the matter.
• Dum docetis, discitis - When we teach, we learn.
• Omnia mea mecum porto - Everything that is mine, I carry with me.
• Fortes fortuna adiuvat - Luck helps the brave.
• Qualis rex, talis grex - What a king, such subjects.
• Amicus verus rara avis est - A true friend is a rare bird.
• Latin proverbs about education with translation: Nosce te ipsum - Know yourself and Per aspera ad astra - Through pain to the stars.
• Veni, vidi, vici - I came, I saw, I conquered.
• Mens sana in corpore sano - A healthy mind in a healthy body.
• Sole lucet omnibus - The sun shines on everyone. (Everyone has the same capabilities.)
• Ave Caesar, imperator, morituri te salutant - Hello, Caesar, emperor, those going to death greet you.
• Repetitio est mater studiorum - Repetition is the mother of learning.
• Nulla dies sine linea - Not a day without a stroke, not a day without a line.
• Non rex est lex, sed lex est rex - It is not the king who is the law, but the law who is the king.
• Periculum in mora! - The danger is in delay!

The Latin language, self-name - lingua Latina, or Latin, is the language of the Latin-Faliscan branch of the Italic languages ​​of the Indo-European language family. Today it is the only Italian language actively used (it is a dead language). The Latin language provided the terminology of jurisprudence.

Until now, one of the most popular types of tattoos is phrases. Among other linguistic forms, the leader here is tattoos in Latin. This collection contains various quotes, aphorisms, catchphrases and sayings of famous people. Among short and long phrases, life-like and wise, funny and interesting, you will definitely be able to find something to your liking. Beautiful phrases in Latin will decorate your wrist, shoulder, ankle and other places on your body.

• Non progredi est regredi

  Not moving forward means going backwards

• Homines quo plura habent, eo cupiunt ampliora

  The more people have, the more they want to have

• Gaudeamus igitur

  So let's have fun

• Gloria victoribus

  Glory to the winners

• Per risum multum debes cognoscere stultum

  You should recognize a fool by his frequent laughter

• Homines non odi, sed ejus vitia

  I don’t hate a person, but his vices

• Sola mater amanda est et pater honestandus est

  Only a mother deserves love, only a father deserves respect

• Victoria nulla est, Quam quae confessos animo quoque subjugat hostes

  True victory is only when the enemies themselves admit defeat.

• Divide et impera

  Divide and rule

• Heu conscienta animi gravis est servitus

  Worse than slavery is remorse

• Lupus non mordet lupum

  A wolf won't bite a wolf

• Ira initium insaniae est

  Anger is the beginning of madness

• Perigrinatio est vita

  Life is a journey

• Fortunam citius reperis, quam retineas
• Heu quam est timendus qui mori tutus putat!

  He is terrible who considers death to be good!

• Hoc est vivere bis, vita posse priore frui

  To be able to enjoy the life you have lived means to live twice

• Mea vita et anima es

  You are my life and soul

• Fructus temporum

  Fruit of time

• Gutta cavat lapidem

  A drop wears away a stone

• For omnia versas

  Blind chance changes everything (the will of blind chance)

• De gustibus non disputandum est

  Tastes could not be discussed

• Fortunam suam quisque parat

  Everyone finds their own destiny

• Jucundissimus est amari, sed non minus amare

  It is very pleasant to be loved, but it is no less pleasant to love yourself.

• Hominis est errare

  Humans tend to make mistakes

• Cogitationes poenam nemo patitur

  No one is punished for thoughts

• Aut viam inveniam, aut faciam

  Either I'll find a way, or I'll pave it myself

• Non ignara mali, miseris succurrerre disco

  Having experienced misfortune, I learned to help those who suffer

• Pecunia non olet

  Money doesn't smell

• Optimum medicamentum quies est

  The best medicine is peace

• Nunquam retrorsum, semper ingrediendum

  Not one step back, always forward

• Melius est nomen bonum quam magnae divitiae

  A good name is better than great wealth

• Etiam innocentes cogit mentiri dolor

  Pain makes even the innocent lie

• Non est fumus absque igne

  There is no smoke without fire

• Suum cuique

  To each his own

• Dolus an virtus quis in hoste requirat?

  Who will decide between cunning and valor when dealing with the enemy?

• Mea mihi conscientia pluris est quam omnium sermo

  My conscience is more important to me than all the gossip

• Lupus pilum mutat, non mentem

  The wolf changes its fur, not its nature

• Qui tacet – consentire videtur

  He who remains silent is considered to have agreed

• Scio me nihil scire

  I know that I know nothing

• In pace

  At peace, at peace

• Ducunt volentem fata, nolentem trahunt

  Fate leads those who want to go, but drags those who don’t want to go

• Fuge, late, tace

  Run, hide, be silent

• Audi, multa, loquere pauca

  Listen a lot, talk little

• Nolite dicere, si nescitis

  Don't say if you don't know

• Flagrante delicto

  At the crime scene, red-handed

• Persona grata

  Desirable or trusted person

• Tantum possumus, quantum scimus

  We can do as much as we know

• Per fas et nefas

  By hook or by crook

• Jactantius maerent, quae minus dolent

  Those who show their grief the most are those who mourn the least.

• Omne ignotum pro magnifico est

  Everything unknown seems majestic

• Educa te ipsum!

  Educate yourself!

• Facile omnes, cum valemus, recta consilia aegrotis damus

  When we are healthy, we easily give good advice to the sick

• Veni, vidi, vici

  I came, I saw, I conquered

• Quae nocent - docent

  What harms, it teaches

• Sic itur ad astra

  So they go to the stars

• Quae fuerant vitia, mores sunt

  What were vices are now morals

• Omnia vincit amor et nos cedamus amori

  Love conquers all and we submit to love

• Ex nihilo nihil fit

  Nothing comes from nothing

• Qui nisi sunt veri, ratio quoque falsa sit omnis

  If the feelings are not true, then our whole mind will turn out to be false.

• In vino veritas, in aqua sanitas

  Truth is in wine, health is in water

• Fugit irrevocabile tempus

  Irreversible time is running out

• Certum voto pete finem

  Set yourself only clear goals (attainable)

• Injuriam facilius facias guam feras

  Easy to offend, harder to endure

• Ira furor brevis est

  Anger is a momentary insanity

• Sua cuique fortuna in manu est

  Everyone has their own destiny in their hands

• Adversa fortuna
• Aetate fruere, mobili cursu fugit

  Enjoy life, it's so fleeting

• Amicos res secundae parant, adversae probant

  Happiness makes friends, misfortune tests them

• Aliis inserviendo consumor

  I waste myself in serving others

• Conscientia mille testes

  Conscience is a thousand witnesses

• Abiens, abi!

  Leaving go!

• Respue quod non es

  Drop what you are not

• Quomodo fabula, sic vita: non quam diu, sed quam bene acta sit refert

  Life is like a play in the theater: what matters is not how long it lasts, but how well it is played

• Edite, bibite, post mortem nulla voluptas!

  Eat, drink, there is no pleasure after death!

• Omnes vulnerant, ultima necat

  Every hour hurts, the last one kills

• Fama volat

  The earth is full of rumors

• Amor omnia vincit

  Love conquers all

• Consultor homini tempus utilissimus

  Time is the most useful adviser to a person

• Ex ungua leonem cognoscimus, ex auribus asinum

  We recognize a lion by its claws, and a donkey by its ears.

• Facta sunt potentiora verbis

  Acts are stronger than words

• Inter parietes

  Within four walls

• Fortiter in re, suaviter in modo

  Firm in action, gentle in handling

• Manus manum lavat

  Hand washes hand

• Per aspera ad astra

  Through hardship to the stars

• Cujusvis hominis est errare; nullius, nisi insipientis in errore perseverare

  Every person makes mistakes, but only a fool can persist in a mistake

• Tanta vis probitatis est, ut eam etiam in hoste diligamus

  The power of honesty is such that we value it even among the enemy

• Out caesar, out nihil

  Either Caesar or nothing

• In memoriam
• Castigo te non quod odio habeam, sed quod amem

  I punish you not because I hate you, but because I love you

• Amor etiam deos tangit

  Even the gods are subject to love

• Incedo per ignes

  I walk among the fire

• Sequere Deum

  Follow God's will

• Doubt is half wisdom

• Esse oportet ut vivas, non vivere ut edas

  You have to eat to live, not live to eat

• In vino veritas

  The truth is in the wine

• Ex malis eligere minima

  Choose the least of two evils

• Optimi consiliarii mortui

  The best advisors are dead

• Ex unguess leonem

  You can recognize a lion by its claws

• Vivere est vincere

  To live is to win

• Incertus animus dimidium sapientiae est

  Doubt is half of wisdom

• Vivere est agere

  To live means to act

• Feci quod potui, faciant meliora potentes

  I did everything I could, whoever can do it better

• Feminae naturam regere desperare est otium

  Having decided to pacify a woman’s temperament, say goodbye to peace!

• Dum spiro, amo atque credo

  While I breathe, I love and believe

• Festina Lente

  Hurry up slowly

• Calamitas virtutis occasio

  Adversity is the Touchstone of Valor

• Omnes homines agunt histrionem

  All people are actors on the stage of life

• Lucri bonus est odor ex re qualibet

  The smell of profit is pleasant, no matter where it comes from

• Factum est factam

  What's done is done (a fact is a fact)

• Ignoscito saepe alteri, nunquam tibi

  Forgive others often, never forgive yourself.

• Tempora mutantur et nos mutamur in illis

  Times change and we change with them

• Tarde venientibus ossa

  Whoever comes late gets bones

• Imago animi vultus est

  The face is the mirror of the soul

• Homo hominis amicus est

  Man is man's friend

• Homines, dum docent, discunt

  People learn by teaching

• Mors nescit legem, tollit cum paupere regem

  Death knows no law, takes both the king and the poor

• Quod cito fit, cito perit

  What is soon made, soon falls apart

• Amor non est medicabilis herbis

  Love cannot be cured with herbs

• Finis vitae, sed non amoris

  Life ends, but not love

• Fidelis et forfis

  Faithful and brave

• Fide, sed cui fidas, vide

  Be vigilant; trust, but be careful who you trust

• Experientia est optima magistra

  Experience is the best teacher

• Verae amititiae sempiternae sunt

  True friendship is forever

• Damant, quod non intelegunt

  They judge because they don't understand

• Descensus averno facilis est

  The easy way to hell

• Viva vox alit plenius

  Living speech nourishes more abundantly

• Vivamus atque amemus

  Let's live and love

• De mortuis aut bene, aut nihil

  About the dead it's either good or nothing

• Ad pulchritudinem ego excitata sum, elegantia spiro et artem efflo

  I am awakened to beauty, breathe grace and radiate art.

• Deus ipse se fecit

  God created himself

• Aequam memento rebus in arduis servare mentem
• Primus inter pares

  First among equals

• Gustus legibus non subiacet

  Taste is not subject to laws

• Semper mors subest

  Death is always near

• Dum spiro, spero!

  While I breathe I hope!

• Homines amplius oculis, quam auribus credunt

  People believe their eyes more than their ears

• Benefacta male locata malefacta arbitror

  I consider blessings done to an unworthy person to be evil deeds.

• Fortes fortuna adjuvat

  Fate helps the brave

• Dura lex, sed lex

  The law is harsh, but it's the law

• Audi, vide, strong

  Listen, watch and be silent

• Omnia mea mecum porto

  I carry everything that’s mine with me

• Omnia, quae volo, adipiscar

  I achieve everything I want

• Omnia mors aequat

  Death equals everything

• Fama clamosa

  Loud glory

• Igne natura renovatur integra

  By fire all nature is renewed

• Si vis amari, ama

  If you want to be loved, love

• In me omnis spes mihi est

  All my hope is in myself

• Out vincere, out mori

  Either win or die

• Mens sana in corpore sano

  In a healthy body healthy mind

• Aliena vitia in oculis habemus, and tergo nostra sunt

  Other people's vices are before our eyes, ours are behind our backs

• Varietas delectat

  Variety is fun

• Naturalia non sunt turpia

  Natural is not shameful

• In venere semper certat dolor et gaudium

  In love, pain and joy always compete

• Nusquam sunt, qui ubique sunt

  Those who are everywhere are nowhere

• Vi veri vniversum vivus vici

  I conquered the universe with the power of truth during my lifetime

• Quo quisque sapientior est, eo solet esse modestior

  The smarter a person is, the more modest he is usually

• Si vis pacem, para bellum

  If you want peace, prepare for war

• Sed semel insanivimus omnes

  One day we all get mad

• Infelicissimum genus infortunii est fuisse felicem

  The greatest misfortune is to be happy in the past

• In vitium ducit culpae fuga

  The desire to avoid a mistake draws you into another

• Tertium non datur

  There is no third

• Quid quisque vitet, nunquam homini satis cautum est in horas

  No one can know when to look out for danger

• Mors omnia solvit

  Death solves all problems

• Memento mori

  memento Mori

• Memento quia pulvis est

  Remember that you are dust

• In aeternum

  Forever, forever

• In pace leones, in proelio cervi

  In time of peace - lions, in battle - deer

• Inter arma silent legs

  When guns thunder, laws are silent

• Nitinur in vetitum semper, cupimusque negata

  We always strive for the forbidden and desire the forbidden

• Tempus fugit

  Time is running out

• Carpe diem

  Seize the day (moment)

• Homo homini lupus est

  Man is a wolf to man

• Corrige praeteritum, praesens rege, cerne futurum

  Correct the past, manage the present, provide for the future

• Oderint dum metuant

  Let them hate, as long as they are afraid

• Vita sine libertate, nihil

  Life without freedom is nothing

• Cum vitia present, paccat qui recte facit

  When vices flourish, those who live honestly suffer

• Ibi potest valere populus, ubi leges valent

  Where the laws are in force and the people are strong

• Leave fit, quote bene fertur onus

  The load becomes light when you carry it with humility

• Imperare sibi maximum imperium est

  To command oneself is the greatest power

• Tu ne cede malis, sed contra audentior ito!

  Do not submit to trouble, but boldly go towards it!

• Beatitudo non est virtutis praemium, sed ipsa virtus

  Happiness is not a reward for valor, but it is valor itself

• Amor, ut lacrima, ab oculo oritur, in cor cadit

  Love, like a tear, is born from the eyes and falls on the heart.

• Esse quam videri

  Be, not seem to be

• Felix, qui quod amat, defendere fortiter audet

  Happy is he who boldly takes under his protection what he loves.

• Sol lucet omnibus

  The sun is shining for everyone

• Odi et amo

  I hate and I love

• Cogito, ergo sum

  I think therefore I am

• Actum ne agas

  What's over, don't come back to it

• Ab altero expectes, alteri quod feceris

  Expect from another what you yourself have done to another

• Amantes sunt amentes

  Lovers are mad

• Antiquus amor cancer est

  Old love is not forgotten

• Cui ridet Fortuna, eum ignorat Femida

  Whoever Fortune smiles on, Themis does not notice

• Omnia fluunt, omnia mutantur

  Everything flows, everything changes

• Ut ameris, amabilis esto

  To be loved, be worthy of love

• Ubi nihil vales, ibi nihil velis

  Where you are not capable of anything, you should not want anything

• Similis simili gaudet

  Like rejoices in like

• In dubio abstine

  When in doubt, refrain

• Utatur motu animi qui uti ratione non potest

  He who cannot follow the dictates of the mind, let him follow the movements of the soul

• Omnia praeclara rara

  Everything beautiful is rare

• In Daemon Deus!

  There is God in the Demon!

• Sibi imperare maximum imperium est

  The highest power is power over yourself

• Terra incognita

  Unknown land

• Mores cuique sui fingit fortunam

  Our fate depends on our morals

• Nihil est ab omni parte beatum

  Nothing is good in every way

• Meliora spero

  Hoping for the best

• Natura abhorret vacuum

  Nature abhors a vacuum

• Homo sum et nihil humani a me alienum puto

  I am a man, and nothing human is alien to me

• Si etiam omnes, ego non

  Even if everything is not me

• Mortem effugere nemo potest

  No one can escape death

• Audire ignoti quom imperant soleo non auscultare

  I'm ready to listen to stupidity, but I won't listen

• Nihil habeo, nihil curo

  I have nothing - I don’t care about anything

• Tanto brevius omne tempus, quanto felicius est

  The faster time flies, the happier it is

• Petite, et dabitur vobis; quaerite et invenietis; pulsate, et aperietur vobis

  Ask, and it shall be given you; seek and you will find; knock and it will be opened to you

• In Tyrannos

  Against tyrants

• Veni, vidi, fugi

  I came, I saw, I ran away

Pearls of thought

NEC MORTALE SONAT

(SOUNDS IMMORTAL)Latin catchphrases

Amico lectori (To a friend-reader)

Necessitas magistra. - Need is a mentor (need will teach you everything).

Compare: “The need for invention is cunning”, “You will start weaving bast shoes as if there is nothing to eat”, “If you get hungry, you will figure out how to get bread”, “A bag and prison will give you the mind.” A similar idea is found in the Roman poet Persia (“Satires”, “Prologue”, 10-11): “The teacher of the arts is the stomach.” From Greek authors - in Aristophanes’ comedy “Plutos” (532-534), where Poverty, which they want to expel from Hellas (Greece), proves that it is she, and not the god of wealth Plutos (to everyone’s joy, he was healed of blindness in the temple the god of healing Asclepius and now lavishing himself on mortals), is the giver of all benefits, forcing people to engage in sciences and crafts.

Nemo omnia potest scire. - Nobody can know everything.

The basis was the words of Horace (“Odes”, IV, 4, 22), taken as an epigraph to the Latin dictionary compiled by the Italian philologist Forcellini: “It is impossible to know everything.” Compare: “You cannot embrace the immensity.”

Nihil habeo, nihil timeo. - I have nothing - I’m not afraid of anything.

Compare Juvenal (“Satires”, X, 22): “A traveler who has nothing with him will sing in the presence of a robber.” Also with the proverb “The rich man cannot sleep, he is afraid of the thief.”

Nil sub sole novum. - There is nothing new under the sun.

From the Book of Ecclesiastes (1, 9), the author of which is considered to be the wise King Solomon. The point is that a person is unable to come up with anything new, no matter what he does, and everything that happens to a person is not an exceptional phenomenon (as it sometimes seems to him), but has already happened before and will happen again after.

Noli nocere! - Do no harm!

The main commandment of a doctor, also known in the form “Primum non nocere” (“First of all, do no harm”). Formulated by Hippocrates.

Noli tangere circulos meos! - Don't touch my circles!

About something inviolable, not subject to change, not allowing interference. It is based on the last words of the Greek mathematician and mechanic Archimedes, quoted by the historian Valery Maxim (“Memorable deeds and words”, VIII, 7, 7). Having taken Syracuse (Sicily) in 212 BC, the Romans gave him life, although the machines invented by the scientist sank and set fire to their ships. But the robbery began, and Roman soldiers entered Archimedes' courtyard and asked who he was. The scientist studied the drawing and instead of answering, covered it with his hand, saying: “Don’t touch this”; he was killed for disobedience. One of Felix Krivin’s “Scientific Tales” (“Archimedes”) is about this.

Nomen est omen. - The name is a sign.

In other words, the name speaks for itself: it says something about a person, foreshadows his fate. It is based on Plautus’s comedy “Persus” (IV, 4, 625): selling a girl named Lucrida, which has the same root as the Latin lucrum (profit), to a pimp, Toxilus convinces him that such a name promises a lucrative deal.

Nomina sunt odiosa. -Names are not recommended.

A call to speak to the point, without getting personal, and not to cite already well-known names. The basis is Cicero’s advice (“In Defense of Sextus Roscius the Americus,” XVI, 47) not to mention the names of acquaintances without their consent.

Non bis in idem. - Not twice for one.

This means that they are not punished twice for the same offense. Compare: “One ox cannot be skinned twice.”

Non curator, qui curat. - He who has worries is not cured.

Inscription on the Baths (public baths) in Ancient Rome.

Non est culpa vini, sed culpa bibentis. “It’s not the wine that’s to blame, it’s the drinker’s fault.”

From the couplets of Dionysius Katbna (II, 21).

Non omnis moriar. - Not all of me will die.

So Horace, in an ode (III, 30, 6), called “Monument” (see article “Exegi monumentum”), speaks of his poems, arguing that while the high priest will ascend the Capitoline Hill, performing the annual prayer for good Rome (which the Romans, like us, called the Eternal City), and his, Horace’s, unfading glory will increase. This motif sounds in all the rehashes of “Monument”. For example, from Lomonosov (“I erected a sign of immortality for myself...”): “I will not die at all, but death will leave // ​​a great part of me, as I end my life.” Or from Pushkin (“I erected a monument to myself, not made by hands...”): Met, all of me will not die - the soul in the treasured lyre // my ashes will survive and will escape decay.”

Non progredi est regredi. - Not going forward means going backwards.

Non rex est lex, sed lex est rex. - The king is not the law, but the law is the king.

Non scholae, sed vitae discimus. - We study not for school, but for life.

It is based on Seneca’s reproach (“Moral Letters to Lucilius”, 106, 12) to armchair philosophers, whose thoughts are divorced from reality, and whose mind is cluttered with useless information.

Non semper erunt Saturnalia. - There will not always be Saturnalia (holidays, carefree days).

Compare: “Not everything is for the cat Maslenitsa”, “Not everything is with supplies, you can live with kvass.” Found in the work attributed to Seneca, “The Apotheosis of the Divine Claudius” (12). Saturnalia was celebrated annually in December (from 494 BC), in memory of the golden age (the era of prosperity, equality, peace), when, according to legend, Saturn, the father of Jupiter, reigned in the region of Latium (where Rome was located). People were having fun in the streets, visiting people; Work, legal proceedings, and the development of military plans stopped. For one day (December 19), the slaves received freedom and sat at the same table with their modestly dressed masters, who, moreover, served them.

Non sum qualis eram. - I'm not the same as I was before.

Having aged, Horace (“Odes”, IV, 1, 3) asks
the goddess of love, Venus, leave him alone.

Nosce te ipsum. - Know yourself.

According to legend, this inscription was inscribed on the pediment of the famous Temple of Apollo in Delphi (Central Greece). They said that once seven Greek sages (6th century BC) gathered near the Delphic temple and laid this saying as the basis of all Hellenic (Greek) wisdom. The Greek original of this phrase, “gnothi seauton”, is given by Juvenal (“Satires”, XI, 27).

Novus rex, nova lex. - New king - new law.

Compare: “A new broom sweeps in a new way.”

Nulla ars in se versatur. - Not a single art (not a single science) is self-contained.

Cicero (“On the Boundaries of Good and Evil,” V, 6, 16) says that the goal of every science lies outside it: for example, healing is the science of health.

Nulla calamitas sola. - There is more than one problem.

Compare: “Trouble has come - open the gates,” “Trouble brings seven troubles.”

Nulla dies sine linea. - Not a day without a line.

A call to practice your art daily; An excellent motto for an artist, writer, publisher. The source is the story of Pliny the Elder (“Natural History”, XXXV, 36, 12) about Apelles, a Greek painter of the 4th century. BC, who drew at least one line every day. Pliny himself, a politician and scientist, the author of the 37-volume encyclopedic work “Natural History” (“History of Nature”), which contains about 20,000 facts (from mathematics to art history) and used information from the works of almost 400 authors, followed this rule all his life Apelles, which became the basis for the couplet: “According to the behest of Elder Pliny, // Nulla dies sine linea.”

Nulla salus bello. - There is no good in war.

In Virgil’s “Aeneid” (XI, 362), the noble Latin Drank asks the king of the Rutuli, Turnus, to put an end to the war with Aeneas, in which many Latins are dying: either to retire, or to fight the hero one-on-one, so that the king’s daughter Latina and the kingdom go to the winner.

Nunc vino pellite curas. - Now drive away your worries with wine.

In Horace’s ode (I, 7, 31), Teucer addresses his companions this way, forced after returning from the Trojan War to his native island of Salamis to go into exile again (see “Ubi bene, ibi patria”).

Oh rus! - Oh village!

“Oh village! When will I see you! - exclaims Horace (“Satires”, II, 6, 60), telling how, after a hectic day spent in Rome, having decided a bunch of things on the go, he strives with all his soul to a quiet corner - an estate in the Sabine Mountains, which has long been the subject of his dreams (see “Hoc erat in votis”) and given to him by Maecenas, a friend of Emperor Augustus. The patron also helped other poets (Virgil, Proportion), but it was thanks to Horace’s poems that his name became famous and came to mean every patron of the arts. In the epigraph to the 2nd chapter of “Eugene Onegin” (“The village where Eugene was bored was a lovely corner...”), Pushkin used a pun: “Oh rus! O Rus'! »

O sancta simplicitas! - Oh holy simplicity!

About someone's naivety, slow-wittedness. According to legend, the phrase was uttered by Jan Hus (1371-1415), the ideologist of the Church Reformation in the Czech Republic, when during his burning as a heretic by the verdict of the Constance Church Council, some pious old woman threw an armful of brushwood into the fire. Jan Hus preached in Prague; he demanded equal rights between the laity and the clergy, called Christ the only head of the church, the only source of doctrine - the Holy Scripture, and called some popes heretics. The Pope summoned Hus to the Council to present his point of view, promising safety, but then, after holding him for 7 months in captivity and executing him, he said that he was not keeping his promises to the heretics.

O tempora! oh more! - Oh times! oh morals!

Perhaps the most famous expression is from the first speech of Cicero (consul 63 BC) against the conspiratorial senator Catiline (I, 2), which is considered the pinnacle of Roman oratory. Revealing the details of the conspiracy at a meeting of the Senate, Cicero in this phrase is indignant at both the impudence of Catiline, who dared to appear in the Senate as if nothing had happened, although his intentions were known to everyone, and the inaction of the authorities in relation to the criminal plotting the death of the Republic; whereas in the old days they killed people who were less dangerous to the state. Usually the expression is used to state the decline of morals, condemn an ​​entire generation, emphasizing the unheard-of nature of the event.

Occidat, dum imperet. - Let him kill, as long as he reigns.

Thus, according to the historian Tacitus (Annals, XIV, 9), the power-hungry Agrippina, the great-granddaughter of Augustus, answered the astrologers who predicted that her son Nero would become emperor, but would kill his mother. Indeed, after 11 years, Agrippina’s husband became her uncle, Emperor Claudius, whom she poisoned 6 years later, in 54 AD, passing the throne to her son. Subsequently, Agrippina became one of the victims of the suspicion of the cruel emperor. After unsuccessful attempts to poison her, Nero engineered a shipwreck; and upon learning that the mother had escaped, he ordered her to be stabbed with a sword (Suetonius, “Nero”, 34). A painful death also awaited him (see “Qualis artifex pereo”).

Oderint, dum metuant. - Let them hate, as long as they are afraid.

The expression usually characterizes power, which rests on the fear of subordinates. Source - the words of the cruel king Atreus from the tragedy of the same name by the Roman playwright Actium (II-I centuries BC). According to Suetonius (“Gaius Caligula”, 30), the emperor Caligula (12-41 AD) liked to repeat them. Even as a child, he loved to be present at tortures and executions, every 10th day he signed sentences, demanding that the convicts be executed with small, frequent blows. The fear among people was so great that many did not immediately believe the news of Caligula’s murder as a result of a conspiracy, believing that he himself spread these rumors in order to find out what they thought about him (Suetonius, 60).

Oderint, dum pront. - Let them hate, as long as they support.

According to Suetonius (Tiberius, 59), Emperor Tiberius (42 BC - 37 AD) spoke thus when reading anonymous poems about his mercilessness. Even in childhood, the character of Tiberius was astutely determined by the teacher of eloquence Theodore of Gadar, who, scolding him, called him “dirt mixed with blood” (“Tiberius”, 57).

Odero, si potero. - I'll hate it if I can.

Ovid (“Love Elegies”, III, 11, 35) talks about the attitude towards an insidious girlfriend.

Od(i) et amo. - I hate and love.

From Catullus’s famous couplet about love and hate (No. 85): “Though I hate, I love. Why? - perhaps you’ll ask.// I don’t understand it myself, but feeling it inside myself, I’m crumbling” (translated by A. Fet). Perhaps the poet wants to say that he no longer feels the same sublime, respectful feeling for his unfaithful friend, but he cannot physically stop loving her and hates himself (or her?) for this, realizing that he is betraying himself, his understanding of love. The fact that these two opposing feelings are equally present in the hero’s soul is emphasized by the equal number of syllables in the Latin verbs “hate” and “love.” Perhaps this is also why there is still no adequate Russian translation of this poem.

Oleum et operam perdidi. - I spent oil and labor.

This is what a person who has wasted time, worked to no avail, and has not received the expected results, can say about himself. The proverb is found in Plautus’s comedy “The Punic” (I, 2, 332), where the girl, whose two companions the young man noticed and greeted first, sees that she tried in vain, dressing up and anointing herself with oil. Cicero gives a similar expression, speaking not only about oil for anointing (“Letters to Relatives”, VII, 1, 3), but also about oil for illumination, used during work (“Letters to Atticus”, II, 17, 1) . We will find a statement similar in meaning in Petronius’s novel “Satyricon” (CXXXIV).

Omnia mea mecum porto. - I carry everything I have with me.

Source - told by Cicero (“Paradoxes”, I, 1, the legend of Biantes, one of the seven Greek sages (VI century BC). His city of Priene was attacked by enemies, and the inhabitants, hastily leaving their homes, tried to capture with as many things as possible. When asked to do the same, Biant replied that this is exactly what he does, because he always carries within himself his true, inalienable wealth, for which no bundles and bags are needed - the treasures of the soul, the wealth of the mind. , but now the words Bianta are often used when they carry things with them for all occasions (for example, all their documents). The expression can also indicate a low level of income.

Omnia mutantur, mutabantur, mutabuntur. - Everything is changing, has changed and will change.

Omnia praeclara rara. - Everything beautiful is rare.

Cicero (“Laelius, or On Friendship,” XXI, 79) talks about how difficult it is to find a true friend. Hence the final words of Spinoza’s Ethics (V, 42): “Everything beautiful is as difficult as it is rare” (about how difficult it is to free the soul from prejudices and affects). Compare with the Greek proverb "Kala halepa" ("The beautiful is difficult"), quoted in Plato's dialogue "Hippias Major" (304 f), which discusses the essence of beauty.

Omnia vincit amor, . - Love conquers everything,

Short version: “Amor omnia vincit” (“Love conquers all”). Compare: “Even if you drown yourself, you still get along with your sweetheart,” “Love and death know no barriers.” The source of the expression is Virgil's Bucolics (X, 69).

Optima sunt communia. - The best belongs to everyone.

Seneca (“Moral Letters to Lucilius”, 16, 7) says that he considers all true thoughts to be his own.

Optimum medicamentum quies est. - The best medicine is peace.

The saying belongs to the Roman physician Cornelius Celsus (“Sentences”, V, 12).

Otia dant vitia. - Idleness breeds vices.

Compare: “Work feeds, but laziness spoils”, “Idleness makes money, but the will is strengthened in work.” Also with the statement of the Roman statesman and writer Cato the Elder (234-149 BC), cited by Columella, a writer of the 1st century. AD (“On Agriculture”, XI, 1, 26): “By doing nothing, people learn bad deeds.”

otium cum dignitate - worthy leisure (given to literature, arts, sciences)

Definition of Cicero (“On the Orator”, 1.1, 1), who, after retiring from the affairs of the state, devoted his free time to writing.

Otium post negotium. - Rest - after business.

Compare: “If you’ve done your job, go for a walk”, “Time for work, time for fun.”

Pacta sunt servanda. - Agreements must be respected.

Compare: “An agreement is more valuable than money.”

Paete, non dolet. - Pet, it doesn’t hurt (there’s nothing wrong with that).

The expression is used in order to convince a person by personal example to try something unknown to him or her that causes fear. These famous words of Arria, the wife of the consul Caecina Petus, who participated in the failed conspiracy against the weak-minded and cruel emperor Claudius (42 AD), are quoted by Pliny the Younger (“Letters”, III, 16, 6). The conspiracy was discovered, its organizer Skribonian was executed. Pet, sentenced to death, had to commit suicide within a certain period of time, but could not decide. And one day his wife, at the conclusion of the agreement, pierced herself with her husband’s dagger, with these words, took it out of the wound and gave it to Pet.

Pallet: aut amat, aut studet. - Pale: either in love, or studying.

Medieval proverb.

pallida morte futura - pale in the face of death (pale as death)

Virgil (Aeneid, IV, 645) speaks of the Carthaginian queen Dido, abandoned by Aeneas, who decided to commit suicide in a fit of madness. Pale, with bloodshot eyes, she rushed through the palace. The hero, who left Dido on the orders of Jupiter (see “Naviget, haec summa (e) sl”), seeing the glow of a funeral pyre from the deck of the ship, felt that something terrible had happened (V, 4-7).

Panem et circenses! - Meal'n'Real!

Usually characterizes the limited desires of ordinary people who are not at all concerned about serious issues in the life of the country. In this exclamation, the poet Juvenal (“Satires”, X, 81) reflected the main demand of the idle Roman mob in the era of the Empire. Having come to terms with the loss of political rights, the poor people were content with the handouts with which dignitaries sought popularity among the people - the distribution of free bread and the organization of free circus shows (chariot races, gladiator fights), and costume battles. Every day, according to the law of 73 BC, poor Roman citizens (there were about 200,000 in the 1st-2nd centuries AD) received 1.5 kg of bread; then they also introduced the distribution of butter, meat, and money.

Parvi liberi, parvum maluni. - Small children are small troubles.

Compare: “Big children are big and poor”, “Small children are woeful, but big ones are doubly so”, “A small child sucks the breast, but a big one does not let the heart”, “A small child does not let you sleep, but a big child does not let you live” .

Parvum parva decent. - Small things suit small people.

Horace (“Epistle”, I, 7, 44), addressing his patron and friend Maecenas, whose name later became a household name, says that he is completely satisfied with his estate in the Sabine Mountains (see “Hoc erat in votis”) and he is not attracted by life in the capital.

Pauper ubique jacet. - The poor thing is defeated everywhere.

Compare: “All the trouble falls on poor Makar”, “The poor man’s censer smokes.” From Ovid's poem "Fasti" (I, 218).

Pecunia nervus belli. - Money is the nerve (driving force) of war.

The expression is found in Cicero (Philippics, V, 2, 6).

Peccant reges, plectuntur Achivi. - The kings sin, and the Achaeans (Greeks) suffer.

Compare: “The bars fight, but the men’s forelocks crack.” It is based on the words of Horace (“Epistle”, I, 2, 14), who tells how the Greek hero Achilles, insulted by King Agamemnon (see “inutil terrae pondus”), refused to participate in the Trojan War, which led to defeat and death many Achaeans.

Pecunia non olet. - Money doesn't smell.

In other words, money is always money, regardless of its source. According to Suetonius (“The Divine Vespasian,” 23), when Emperor Vespasian imposed a tax on public toilets, his son Titus began to reproach his father. Vespasian brought a coin from the first profit to his son’s nose and asked if it smelled. “Non olet” (“It does not smell”), answered Titus.

Per aspera ad astra. - Through thorns (difficulties) to the stars.

A call to reach your goal, overcoming all obstacles along the way. In reverse order: "Ad astra per aspera" is the motto of the state of Kansas.

Pereat mundus, fiat justitia! - Let the world perish, but justice will be done!

“Fiat justitia, pereat mundus” (“Let justice be done and let peace perish”) is the motto of Ferdinand I, Emperor (1556-1564) of the Holy Roman Empire, expressing the desire to restore justice at any cost. The expression is often quoted with the last word replaced.

Periculum in mora. - The danger is in delay. (Delay is like death.)

Titus Livius (“History of Rome from the Foundation of the City,” XXXVIII, 25, 13) speaks of the Romans, pressed by the Gauls, who fled, seeing that they could no longer hesitate.

Plaudite, cives! - Applaud, citizens!

One of the final addresses of Roman actors to the audience (see also “Valete et plaudite”). According to Suetonius (The Divine Augustus, 99), before his death, Emperor Augustus asked (in Greek) his friends as they entered to clap if, in their opinion, he had played the comedy of life well.

Plenus venter non studet libenter. - A full belly is deaf to learning.

plus sonat, quam valet - more ringing than meaning (more ringing than it weighs)

Seneca (“Moral Letters to Lucilius”, 40, 5) speaks of the speeches of demagogues.

Poete nascuntur, oratores fiunt. - People are born poets, but become orators.

It is based on words from Cicero’s speech “In Defense of the Poet Aulus Licinius Archias” (8, 18).

pollice verso - with a turned finger (finish him off!)

By turning the lowered thumb of the right hand towards the chest, the spectators decided the fate of the defeated gladiator: the winner, who received a bowl of gold coins from the organizers of the games, had to finish him off. The expression is found in Juvenal (“Satires”, III, 36-37).

Populus remedia cupit. - People are hungry for medicine.

Saying by Galen, personal physician of Emperor Marcus Aurelius (reigned 161-180), his son-in-law and co-ruler Verus, and son Commodus.

Post nubila sol. - After bad weather - the sun.

Compare: “Not everything is bad weather, there will be a red sun.” It is based on a poem by the New Latin poet Alan of Lille (12th century): “After the dark clouds, the sun is more comforting to us than the usual; // so love after quarrels will seem brighter” (translated by the compiler). Compare with the motto of Geneva: “Post tenebras lux” (“After darkness, light”).

Primum vivere, deinde philosophari. - First to live, and only then to philosophize.

The call is to experience and experience a lot before talking about life. In the mouth of a person associated with science, it means that the joys of everyday life are not alien to him.

primus inter pares - first among equals

On the position of the monarch in a feudal state. The formula dates back to the time of Emperor Augustus, who, fearing the fate of his predecessor, Julius Caesar (he was too clearly striving for sole power and was killed in 44 BC, as see in the article “Et tu, Brute!” ), maintained the appearance of a republic and freedom, calling himself primus inter pares (since his name was in first place on the list of senators), or princeps (i.e., first citizen). Hence, established by Augustus by 27 BC. a form of government when all republican institutions were preserved (Senate, elected offices, national assembly), but in fact power belonged to one person, is called the principate.

Prior tempore - potior jure. - First in time - first in right.

A legal rule called the right of first possession. Compare: “He who ripened, ate.”

pro aris et focis - for altars and hearths

In other words, protect everything that is most precious. Found in Titus Livy (“History of Rome from the Founding of the City”, IX, 12, 6).

Procul ab oculis, procul ex mente. - Out of sight, out of mind.

Procul, profani! - Go away, uninitiated!

Usually this is a call not to judge things that you don’t understand. Epigraph to Pushkin’s poem “The Poet and the Crowd” (1828). In Virgil (Aeneid, VI, 259), the prophetess Sibyl exclaims this way, hearing the howling of dogs - a sign of the approach of the goddess Hecate, mistress of shadows: “Strangers to the mysteries, go away! Leave the grove immediately!” (translated by S. Osherov). The seer drives away the companions of Aeneas, who came to her to find out how he can go down to the kingdom of the dead and see his father there. The hero himself was already initiated into the mystery of what was happening thanks to the golden branch that he plucked in the forest for the mistress of the underworld, Proserpina (Persephone).

Proserpina nullum caput fugit. - Proserpine (death) spares no one.

It is based on the words of Horace (“Odes”, I, 28, 19-20). About Proserpina, see the previous article.

Pulchra res homo est, si homo est. - A person is beautiful if he is a person.

Compare in Sophocles’ tragedy “Antigone” (340-341): “There are many miracles in the world, // man is the most wonderful of them all” (translated by S. Shervinsky and N. Poznyakov). In the original Greek - the definition is “deinos” (terrible, but also wonderful). The point is that great powers lie hidden in a person, with their help you can do good or evil deeds, it all depends on the person himself.

Qualis artifex pereo! - What artist dies!

About something valuable that is not used for its intended purpose, or about a person who has not realized himself. According to Suetonius (Nero, 49), these words were repeated before his death (68 AD) by Emperor Nero, who considered himself a great tragic singer and loved to perform in theaters in Rome and Greece. The Senate declared him an enemy and sought him out for execution according to the custom of his ancestors (the criminal had his head clamped with a block and whipped with rods until death), but Nero still hesitated to give up his life. He ordered to dig a grave, then to bring water and firewood, all exclaiming that a great artist was dying in him. Only when he heard the approach of the horsemen who were instructed to take him alive, Nero, with the help of the freedman Phaon, plunged a sword into his throat.

Qualis pater, talis filius. - Such is the father, such is the fellow. (Like father, like son.)

Qualis rex, talis grex. - Like the king, such is the people (i.e., like the priest, such is the parish).

Qualis vir, talis oratio. - Such is the husband (person), such is the speech.

From the maxims of Publilius Syrus (No. 848): “Speech is a reflection of the mind: as is the man, so is speech.” Compare: “To know a bird by its feathers, and a fellow by its speech,” “Like a priest, such is his prayer.”

Qualis vita, et mors ita. - As life is, so is death.

Compare: “A dog’s death is a dog’s death.”

Quandoque bonus dormitat Homerus. - Sometimes the glorious Homer dozes (makes mistakes).

Horace (Science of Poetry, 359) says that even in Homer's poems there are weak points. Compare: “Even the sun has spots.”

Qui amat me, amat et canem meum. - Whoever loves me loves my dog.

Qui canit arte, canat, ! - Whoever can sing, let him sing!

Ovid (“Science of Love”, II, 506) advises the lover to reveal all his talents to his girlfriend.

Qui bene amat, bene castigat. - He who sincerely loves, sincerely (from the heart) punishes.

Compare: “Loves like a soul, but shakes like a pear.” Also in the Bible (Proverbs of Solomon, 3, 12): “Whom the Lord loves, He chastens, and favors, as a father does to his son.”

Qui multum alphabet, plus cupit. - He who has a lot wants more.

Compare: “Whoever is overflowing, give more,” “Appetite comes with eating,” “The more you eat, the more you want.” The expression is found in Seneca (“Moral Letters to Lucilius”, 119, 6).

Qui non zelat, non amat. - He who is not jealous does not love.

Qui scribit, bis legit. - He who writes reads twice.

Qui terret, plus ipse timet. - He who inspires fear fears himself even more.

Qui totum vult, totum perdit. - He who wants everything loses everything.

Quia nominor leo. - For my name is Lion.

About the right of the strong and influential. In the fable of Phaedrus (I, 5, 7), the lion, hunting together with a cow, a goat and a sheep, explained to them why he took the first quarter of the prey (he took the second for his help, the third because he was stronger, and he forbade even touching the fourth).

Quid est veritas? - What is truth?

In the Gospel of John (18:38) this is the famous question that Pontius Pilate, procurator of the Roman province of Judea, asked Jesus, who was brought before him for trial, in response to His words: “For this purpose I was born and for this purpose I came into the world, to testify to truth; everyone who is of the truth listens to my voice" (John 18:37).

Quid opus nota noscere? - Why try what has been tried?

Plautus (“The Boastful Warrior”, II, 1) speaks of excessive suspicion towards people who have proven themselves well.

Quidquid discis, tibi discis. - Whatever you study, you study for yourself.

The expression is found in Petronius (Satyricon, XLVI).

Quidquid latet, apparebit. - Everything secret will become clear.

From the Catholic hymn “Dies irae” (“Day of Wrath”), which speaks of the coming day of the Last Judgment. The basis of the expression, apparently, was the words from the Gospel of Mark (4, 22; or from Luke, 8, 17): “For there is nothing hidden that will not be made manifest, nor hidden that will not be made known and revealed would".

legiones redde. - bring back the legions.

Regret over an irrevocable loss or a call to return something that belongs to you (sometimes simply said “Legiones redde”). According to Suetonius (The Divine Augustus, 23), Emperor Augustus exclaimed this repeatedly after the crushing defeat of the Romans under Quintilius Varus from the Germans in the Teutoburg Forest (9 AD), where three legions were destroyed. Having learned about the misfortune, Augustus did not cut his hair or beard for several months in a row, and celebrated the day of defeat every year with mourning. The expression is given in Montaigne’s “Essays”: in this chapter (Book I, Chapter 4) we are talking about human incontinence, worthy of condemnation.

Quis bene celat amorem? -Who successfully hides love?

Compare: “Love is like a cough: you can’t hide it from people.” Quoted by Ovid (“Heroids”, XII, 37) in the love letter of the sorceress Medea to her husband Jason. She remembers the first time she saw a beautiful stranger who arrived on the ship "Argo" for the golden fleece - the skin of a golden ram, and how Jason instantly felt Medea's love for him.

This is what Persia, one of the most difficult Roman authors to perceive, says about his satires (I, 2), arguing that for a poet his own opinion is more important than the recognition of his readers.

Quo vadis? - Are you coming? (Where are you going?)

According to church tradition, during the persecution of Christians in Rome under Emperor Nero (c. 65), the Apostle Peter decided to leave his flock and find a new place for his life and deeds. Leaving the city, he saw Jesus heading to Rome. In response to the question: “Quo vadis, Domine? "("Where are you going, Lord?") - Christ said that he was going to Rome to die again for a people deprived of a shepherd. Peter returned to Rome and was executed along with the Apostle Paul captured in Jerusalem. Considering that he was not worthy to die like Jesus, he asked to be crucified head down. With the question “Quo vadis, Domine?” in the Gospel of John, the apostles Peter (13, 36) and Thomas (14, 5) turned to Christ during the Last Supper.

Quod dubitas, ne feceris. - If you doubt it, don’t do it.

The expression is found in Pliny the Younger (“Letters”, I, 18, 5). Cicero speaks about this (“On Duties”, I, 9, 30).

Quod licet, ingratum (e)st. - What is permitted does not attract.

In Ovid’s poem (“Love Elegies”, II, 19, 3), the lover asks the husband to guard his wife, if only so that the other would burn hotter with passion for her: after all, “there is no taste in what is permitted, prohibition excites more sharply” (translated by S. Shervinsky ).

Quod licet Jovi, non licet bovi. - What is allowed to Jupiter is not allowed to the bull.

Compare: “It’s up to the abbot, but it’s up to the brethren!”, “What the lord can do, Ivan can’t.”

Quod petis, est nusquam. “What you crave is nowhere to be found.”

Ovid in the poem “Metamorphoses” (III, 433) addresses the beautiful young man Narcissus this way. Rejecting the love of the nymphs, he was punished for this by the goddess of retribution, having fallen in love with what he could not possess - his own reflection in the waters of the source (since then, a narcissist is called a narcissist).

Quod scripsi, scripsi. - What I wrote, I wrote.

Usually this is a categorical refusal to correct or redo your work. According to the Gospel of John (19, 22), this is how the Roman procurator Pontius Pilate responded to the Jewish high priests, who insisted that on the cross where Jesus was crucified, instead of the inscription made by order of Pilate, “Jesus of Nazareth, King of the Jews” (according to Hebrew, Greek and Latin - 19, 19), it was written “He said: “I am the King of the Jews” (19, 21).

Quod uni dixeris, omnibus dixeris. -What you say to one, you say to everyone.

Quos ego! - Here I am! (Well, I'll show you!)

In Virgil (Aeneid, 1.135) these are the words of the god Neptune, addressed to the winds, which, without his knowledge, had disturbed the sea in order to smash the ships of Aeneas (the mythical ancestor of the Romans) against the rocks, thereby rendering a service to Juno, the wife of Jupiter, who was unfavorable to the hero.

Quot homines, tot sententiae. - How many people, so many opinions.

Compare: “A hundred heads, a hundred minds”, “There is no need for a mind”, “Everyone has a head of his own” (Grigory Skovoroda). The phrase is found in Terence’s comedy “Formion” (II, 4, 454), in Cicero (“On the Boundaries of Good and Evil”, I, 5, 15).

Re bene gesta. - Do - do so,

Rem tene, verba sequentur. - Comprehend the essence (master the essence), and the words will appear.

The words of an orator and politician of the 2nd century given in a late rhetoric textbook. BC. Cato the Elder. Compare Horace (“The Science of Poetry,” 311): “If the subject becomes clear, the words will be chosen without difficulty” (translated by M. Gasparov). Umberto Eco (“The Name of the Rose.” - M.: Book Chamber, 1989. - P. 438) says that if to write a novel he had to learn everything about a medieval monastery, then in poetry the principle “Verba tene, res sequentur” applies. (“Master the words, and the objects will appear”).

Repetitio est mater studiorum.-Repetition is the mother of learning.

Requiem aeternam. - Eternal peace.

The beginning of the Catholic funeral mass, whose first word (requiem - peace) gave the name to many musical compositions written on its words; of these, the most famous are the works of Mozart and Verdi. The set and order of the texts of the requiem were finally established in the 14th century. in the Roman rite and was approved by the Council of Trent (which ended in 1563), which prohibited the use of alternative texts.

Requiescat in pace. (R.I.P.) - May he rest in peace,

In other words, peace be upon him (her). The closing phrase of a Catholic funeral prayer and a common epitaph. Sinners and enemies can be addressed to the parody “Requiescat in pice” - “Let him rest (may he rest) in tar.”

Res ipsa loquitur.-The thing speaks itself.

Compare: “A good product praises itself,” “A good piece will find its own mouth.”

Res, non verba. - deeds, not words.

Res sacra miser. - Unfortunate is a sacred matter.

Inscription on the building of a former charitable society in Warsaw.

Roma locuta, causa finita. - Rome has spoken, the matter is over.

Usually this is a recognition of someone's right to be the main authority in a given field and to decide the outcome of a case with their opinion. The opening phrase of the bull of 416, where Pope Innocent approved the decision of the Synod of Carthage to excommunicate the opponents of St. Augustine (354-430), a philosopher and theologian. Then these words became a formula (“the papal curia made its final decision”).

Saepe stilum vertas. - Rotate your style more often.

Style (stylus) is a stick, with the sharp end of which the Romans wrote on waxed tablets (see “tabula rasa”), and with the other, in the shape of a spatula, they erased what was written. Horace (“Satires”, I, 10, 73) with this phrase calls on poets to carefully finish their works.

Salus populi suprema lex. - The good of the people is the highest law.

The expression is found in Cicero (“On the Laws”, III, 3, 8). "Salus populi suprema lex esto" ("The welfare of the people be the supreme law") is the motto of the state of Missouri.

Sapere aude. - Strive to be wise (usually: strive for knowledge, dare to know).

Horace (“Epistle”, I, 2, 40) speaks of the desire to rationally arrange one’s life.

Sapienti sat. - Smart enough.

Compare: “Intelligent: pauca” - “To someone who understands not much” (an intellectual is someone who understands), “A smart person will understand at a glance.” It is found, for example, in Terence’s comedy “Formion” (III, 3, 541). The young man instructed a resourceful slave to get money and when asked where to get it, he replied: “Father is here. - I know. What? “That’s enough for the smart one” (translated by A. Artyushkov).

Sapientia governor navis. - Wisdom is the helmsman of the ship.

Given in a collection of aphorisms compiled by Erasmus of Rotterdam (“Adagia”, V, 1, 63), with reference to Titinius, a Roman comedian of the 2nd century. BC. (fragment No. 127): “The helmsman steers the ship with wisdom, not strength.” The ship has long been considered a symbol of the state, as can be seen from the poem of the Greek lyricist Alcaeus (VII-VI centuries BC) under the code name “New Shaft”.

Sapientis est mutare consilium. - A wise man tends to change his mind.

Satis vixi vel vitae vel gloriae. - I have lived enough for both life and glory.

Cicero (“On the return of Marcus Claudius Marcellus,” 8, 25) quotes these words of Caesar, telling him that he has not lived enough for his homeland, which has suffered civil wars, and alone is capable of healing its wounds.

Scientia est potentia. - Knowledge is power.

Compare: “Without science is like without hands.” It is based on the statement of the English philosopher Francis Bacon (1561-1626) about the identity of knowledge and human power over nature (“New Organon”, I, 3): science is not an end in itself, but a means to increase this power. S

cio me nihil scire. - I know that I don't know anything.

Translation into Latin of the famous words of Socrates, quoted by his student Plato (“Apology of Socrates”, 21 d). When the Delphic oracle (the oracle of the temple of Apollo in Delphi) called Socrates the wisest of the Hellenes (Greeks), he was surprised, because he believed that he knew nothing. But then, having started talking with people who insisted that they knew a lot, and asking them the most important and, at first glance, simple questions (what is virtue, beauty), he realized that, unlike others, he knew at least this that he knows nothing. Compare the Apostle Paul (Corinthians, I, 8, 2): “Whoever thinks that he knows something, still knows nothing as he ought to know.”

Semper avarus eget. - A stingy person is always in need.

Horace (“Epistle”, I, 2, 56) advises curbing your desires: “A greedy person is always in need - so set a limit to lusts” (translated by N. Gunzburg). Compare: “The stingy rich man is poorer than the beggar”, “It is not the poor one who has little, but the one who wants a lot”, “It is not the poor one who has nothing, but the one who rakes in”, “No matter how much a dog grabs, a well-fed one cannot happen”, “You can’t fill a bottomless barrel, you can’t feed a greedy belly.” Also from Sallust (“On the Conspiracy of Catalina”, 11, 3): “Greed is not diminished by either wealth or poverty.” Or from Publilius Syrus (Sentences, No. 320): “Poverty lacks little, greed lacks everything.”

semper idem; semper eadem - always the same; always the same (same)

“Semper idem” can be considered as a call to maintain peace of mind in any situation, not to lose face, and to remain yourself. Cicero in his treatise “On Duties” (I, 26, 90) says that only insignificant people do not know the measure of either sorrow or joy: after all, in any circumstances it is better to have “an even character, always the same facial expression” ( trans. V. Gorenshtein). As Cicero says in “Tusculan Conversations” (III, 15, 31), this is exactly what Socrates was: the grumpy wife of Xanthippe scolded the philosopher precisely because the expression on his face was unchanged, “after all, his spirit, imprinted on his face, did not know changes "(translated by M. Gasparov).

Senectus ipsa morbus.-Old age itself is a disease.

Source - Terence's comedy "Formion" (IV, 1, 574-575), where Khremet explains to his brother why he was so slow in coming to his wife and daughter, who remained on the island of Lemnos, that when he finally got ready there, he found out that they themselves They went to see him in Athens a long time ago: “I was detained by illness.” - "What? Which one? - “Here’s another question! Isn’t old age a disease?” (Translated by A. Artyushkova)

Seniores priores. - Elders have advantage.

For example, you can say this by skipping the oldest person forward.

Sero venientibus ossa. - Late arrivals bones.

The Roman greeting to late guests (the expression is also known in the form "Tarde venientibus ossa"). Compare: “The last guest eats a bone,” “The late guest eats bones,” “Whoever is late drinks water.”

Si felix esse vis, esto. - If you want to be happy, be.

The Latin analogue of the famous aphorism of Kozma Prutkov (this name is a literary mask created by A.K. Tolstoy and the Zhemchuzhnikov brothers; this is how they signed their satirical works in the 1850-1860s).

Si gravis, brevis, si longus, levis. - If it is heavy, then it is short-lived; if it is long, then it is light.

These words of the Greek philosopher Epicurus, who was a very sick man and considered pleasure, which he understood as the absence of pain, to be the highest good, are cited and disputed by Cicero (“On the Boundaries of Good and Evil,” II, 29, 94). Extremely serious illnesses, he says, can also be long-term, and the only way to resist them is courage, which does not allow cowardice. The expression of Epicurus, since it is polysemantic (usually quoted without the word dolor - pain), can also be attributed to human speech. It will turn out: “If it’s weighty, then it’s short, if it’s long (wordy), then it’s frivolous.”

Si judicas, cognosce. - If you judge, figure it out (listen)

In Seneca’s tragedy “Medea” (II, 194) these are the words of the main character addressed to the king of Corinth Creon, whose daughter Jason, Medea’s husband, for whose sake she once betrayed her father (helped the Argonauts take away the Golden Fleece kept by him) was going to marry. , left her homeland, killed her brother. Creon, knowing how dangerous Medea's anger is, ordered her to immediately leave the city; but, succumbing to her persuasion, he gave her 1 day of respite to say goodbye to the children. This day was enough for Medea to take revenge. She sent clothes soaked in witchcraft as a gift to the royal daughter, and she, having put them on, burned along with her father, who hastened to her aid.

Si sapis, sis apis.-If you are intelligent, be a bee (that is, work)

Si tacuisses, philosophus mansisses. - If you had remained silent, you would have remained a philosopher.

Compare: “Keep silent and you will pass for smart.” It is based on a story given by Plutarch (“On the Pious Life,” 532) and Boethius (“Consolation of Philosophy,” II, 7) about a man who was proud of the title of philosopher. Someone exposed him, promising to recognize him as a philosopher if he patiently endured all the insults. After listening to his interlocutor, the proud man mockingly asked: “Now do you believe that I am a philosopher?” - “I would have believed it if you had remained silent.”

Si vales, bene est, ego valeo. (S.V.B.E.E.V.) - If you are healthy, that’s good, and I’m healthy.

Seneca (“Moral Letters to Lucilius”, 15, 1), talking about the ancient custom of beginning a letter with these words that survived until his time (1st century AD), himself addresses Lucilius like this: “If you are studying philosophy is good. Because only in her is health” (translated by S. Osherov).

Si vis amari, ama. - If you want to be loved, love

Quoted from Seneca (“Moral Letters to Lucilius”, 9, 6) the words of the Greek philosopher Hekaton.

Si vis pacem, para bellum. - If you want peace, prepare for war.

The saying gave its name to the Parabellum, a German automatic 8-round pistol (it was in service with the German army until 1945). “Whoever wants peace, let him prepare for war” - the words of a Roman military writer of the 4th century. AD Vegetia (“A Brief Instruction in Military Affairs”, 3, Prologue).

Sic itur ad astra. - So they go to the stars.

In Virgil (Aeneid, IX, 641), the god Apollo addresses these words to the son of Aeneas Ascanius (Yul), who struck the enemy with an arrow and won the first victory in his life.

Sic transit gloria mundi. - This is how worldly glory passes.

Usually they say this about something lost (beauty, glory, strength, greatness, authority), which has lost its meaning. It is based on the treatise of the German mystic philosopher Thomas a à Kempis (1380-1471) “On the Imitation of Christ” (I, 3, 6): “Oh, how quickly worldly glory passes.” Beginning around 1409, these words are spoken during the ceremony of consecrating a new pope, burning a piece of cloth in front of him as a sign of the fragility and perishability of everything earthly, including the power and glory he receives. Sometimes the saying is quoted with the last word replaced, for example: “Sic transit tempus” (“This is how time passes”).

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There are moments in a conversation when ordinary words are no longer enough, or they seem inconspicuous in front of the deep meaning that you want to convey, and then winged sayings come to the rescue - the Latin ones are the most significant in terms of power of thought and brevity.

alive!

A great many words and phrases in different languages ​​of the world are borrowed from Latin. They are so deeply rooted that they are used all the time.

For example, the well-known aqua (water), alibi (proof of innocence), index (index), veto (prohibition), persona non grata (a person who was not wanted to be seen and was not expected), alter ego (my second self), alma mater (mother-nurse), capre diem (seize the moment), as well as the well-known postscript (P.S.), used as a postscript to the main text, and a priori (relying on experience and faith).

Based on the frequency of use of these words, it is too early to say that the Latin language has long died. He will live in Latin sayings, words and aphorisms for a long time.

The most famous sayings

A small list of the most popular works on history known to many fans and philosophical conversations over a cup of tea. Many of them are almost similar in frequency of use:

Dum spiro, spero. - While I breathe I hope. This phrase first appears in Cicero’s Letters and also in Seneca.

De mortus out bene, out nihil. - It’s good about the dead, or nothing. It is believed that Chilo used this phrase as early as the fourth century BC.

Vox populi, vox Dia. - The voice of the people is the voice of God. A phrase heard in Hesiod’s poem, but for some reason it is attributed to the historian William of Malmesbury, which is completely wrong. In the modern world, the movie “V for Vendetta” brought fame to this saying.

Memento mori. - Memento Mori. This expression was once used as a greeting by Trapist monks.

Note bene! - A call to pay attention. Often written in the margins of the texts of great philosophers.

Oh tempora, oh mores! - Oh times, oh morals. from Cicero's Oration against Catiline.

After the fact. - Often used to denote an action after an already accomplished fact.

About this contra. - Pros and cons.

In bono veritas. - The truth is good.

Volens, nolens. - Willy-nilly. Can also be translated as “whether you like it or not”

The truth is in the wine

One of the most famous Latin sayings sounds like “in vino veritas”, in which the truth is veritas, in vino - the wine itself. This is a favorite expression of people who often drink a glass, in such a cunning way they justify their craving for alcohol. The authorship is attributed to the Roman writer Pliny the Elder, who died in the eruption of Vesuvius. At the same time, his authentic version sounds somewhat different: “Truth has drowned in wine more than once,” and the subtext is that a drunk person is always more truthful than a sober one. The great thinker was often quoted in his works by the poet Blok (in the poem “Stranger”), the writer Dostoevsky in the novel “Teenager” and some other authors. Some historians claim that the authorship of this Latin proverb belongs to a completely different person, the Greek poet Alcaeus. There is also a similar Russian proverb: “What a sober man has on his mind, a drunk man has on his tongue.”

Quotes from the Bible translated from Latin into Russian

Many phraseological units used today are drawn from the greatest book of the world and are grains of great wisdom that pass from century to century.

He who does not work does not eat (from 2nd Paul). Russian analogue: he who does not work does not eat. The meaning and sound are almost identical.

Let this cup pass from me. - This is taken from the Gospel of Matthew. And from the same source - The student is not higher than his teacher.

Remember that you are dust. - Taken from the book of Genesis, this phrase reminds everyone who is proud of their greatness that all people are made from the same “dough.”

The abyss calls the abyss (Psalter.) The phrase in Russian has an analogue: trouble does not come alone.

Do what you plan (Gospel of John). - These are the words spoken by Jesus to Judas before his betrayal.

Phrases for every day

Latin sayings with transcription in Russian (for easier reading and memorization) can be used in ordinary conversation, decorating your speech with wise aphorisms, giving it special poignancy and uniqueness. Many of them are also familiar to most:

Diez diem dotset. - Every previous day teaches a new one. Authorship is attributed to someone who lived in the first century BC.

Ecce homo! - Behold the Man! The expression is taken from the Gospel of John, the words of Pontius Pilate about Jesus Christ.

Elephantem ex muca fascis. - You make an elephant out of a molehill.

Errare humanum est. - To err is human (these are also the words of Cicero)..

Essay kvam videri. - Be, not seem to be.

Ex animo. - From the bottom of my heart, from the soul.

Exitus of the act of trial. - The result justifies the means (action, act, deed).

Look for who benefits

Quid bono and quid prodest. - The words of the Roman consul, who was often quoted by Cicero, who in turn is universally quoted by detectives in modern films: “Who benefits, or look for who benefits.”

Researchers of ancient treatises on history believe that these words belong to the lawyer Cassian Ravilla, who in the first century of our century investigated a crime and addressed the judges with these words.

Words of Cicero

Marcus Tullius Cicero is a great and political figure who played a leading role in exposing the Catiline conspiracy. He was executed, but many of the thinker’s sayings continue to live among us for a long time, like Latin sayings, but few people know that he was the author.

For example, everyone knows:

Ab igne ignam. - From the fire, fire (Russian: from the fire to the fire).

A true friend is found in a wrong deed (in a treatise on friendship)

To live is to think (Vivere eats Kogitare).

Either let him drink or leave (out bibat, out abeat) - a phrase often used at Roman feasts. In the modern world it has an analogue: they don’t go to someone else’s barracks with their own regulations.

Habit is second nature (treatise “On the Highest Good”). This statement was also picked up by the poet Pushkin:

The habit has been given to us from above...

The letter does not blush (epistula non erubescit). From a letter from Cicero to a Roman historian, in which he expressed his satisfaction that he could express much more on paper than in words.

Everyone makes mistakes, but only a fool persists. Taken from the work "Philippics"

About love

This subsection contains Latin sayings (with translation) about the highest feeling - love. Having reflected on their deep meaning, one can trace the thread that connects all times: Trahit sua quemque voluptas.

Love cannot be cured with herbs. Ovid's words, later paraphrased by Alexander Pushkin:

The disease of love is incurable.

Femina nihil pestilentius. - There is nothing more destructive than a woman. Words belonging to the great Homer.

Amor omnibus let's go. - Part of Virgil's saying, “love is the same for all.” There is another variation: all ages are submissive to love.

Old love must be knocked out with love, like a stake. Words of Cicero.

Analogues of Latin and Russian expressions

A lot of Latin sayings have identical meanings to proverbs in our culture.

The eagle doesn't catch flies. - Each bird has its own nest. It hints that you need to adhere to your moral principles and rules of life, without falling below your level.

Excess food interferes with mental acuity. - Words that have a related proverb among Russians: a full belly is deaf to science. This is probably why many great thinkers lived in poverty and hunger.

Every cloud has a silver lining. There is an absolutely identical saying in our country. Or maybe some Russian fellow borrowed it from the Latins, and from then on it was the same?

Like the king, so is the crowd. Analogue - such is the pop, such is the arrival. And more about the same thing:

What is allowed to Jupiter is not allowed to the bull. About the same thing: to Caesar is what is Caesar's.

Whoever has done half the work has already begun (attributed to Horace: “Dimidium facti, qui tsopit, khabet”). Plato has the same meaning: “The beginning is half the battle,” as well as the old Russian proverb: “A good beginning covers half the battle.”

Patrie fumus igne alieno luculentzior. - The smoke of the fatherland is brighter than the fire of a foreign land (Russian - The smoke of the fatherland is sweet and pleasant to us).

Mottos of great people

Latin sayings have also been used as mottos of famous individuals, societies and fraternities. For example, “to the eternal glory of God” is the motto of the Jesuits. The motto of the Templars is “non nobis, Domine, sed nomini tuo da gloriam,” which translates: “Not to us, Lord, but to your name, give glory.” And also the famous “Capre diem” (seize the moment) - this is the motto of the Epicureans, taken from Horace’s opus.

“Either Caesar or nothing,” is the motto of Cardinal Borgia, who took the words of Caligula, the Roman emperor famous for his exorbitant appetites and desires.

"Faster, higher, stronger!" - Since 1913 it has been a symbol of the Olympic Games.

“De omnibus dubito” (I doubt everything) is the motto of Rene Descartes, a scientist-philosopher.

Fluctuat nec mergitur (floats, but does not sink) - on the coat of arms of Paris there is this inscription under the boat.

Vita sine libertate, nihil (life without freedom is nothing) - Romain Roland, a famous French writer, walked through life with these words.

Vivere eat militare (to live means to fight) - the motto of the great Lucius Seneca the Younger, and philosopher.

About how useful it is to be a polyglot

There is a story circulating on the Internet about a resourceful medical student who witnessed how a gypsy woman became attached to an unfamiliar girl with calls to “gild her pen and tell fortunes.” The girl was quiet and shy and could not properly refuse a beggar. The guy, sympathizing with the girl, came up and began shouting out the names of diseases in Latin, waving his arms widely around the gypsy. The latter hastily retreated. After some time, the guy and girl happily got married, recalling the comical moment of their acquaintance.

Origins of language

The Latin language gets its name from the Lanites, who lived in Latium, a small region in the center of Italy. The center of Latium was Rome, which grew from a city to the capital of the Great Empire, and Latin was recognized as the official language over a vast territory from the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea, as well as in parts of Asia, North Africa and the Euphrates River valley.

In the second century BC, Rome conquered Greece, the ancient Greek and Latin languages ​​mixed, giving rise to many Romance languages ​​(French, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, among which Sardinian is considered the closest in sound to Latin).

In the modern world, medicine is unthinkable without Latin, because almost all diagnoses and medications are spoken in this language, and the philosophical works of ancient thinkers in Latin are still an example of the epistolary genre and cultural heritage of the highest quality.